Rise
by LittleBuzzBuzz
Summary: Sam gets hired by the infamous Fentons to be their housekeeper, but with a few rules. The lab is off limits, but so is the bedroom where they keep their son under lock and key after a freak accident that occurred a few years back...
1. Prologue

**Hello fellow readers! I decided to write something different for a change. I hope you'll find it interesting :)**

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With the big neon sign flashing in her face, Sam almost scoffed for asking herself if she was in the right place. It's not like she hasn't already been here before. This is where her interview for the job took place after all. She parked her car at the curb, eyeing the three-story building that displayed a flashing sign that read 'Fenton Works'. She was starting to think taking care of a home so big by herself was something she wouldn't be able to accomplish, but she already got the job and she was determined to do her best. Shaking off any nerves she had for her first day, she exited her car and made her way to the front door. She knocked on the door lightly, and it opened moments later. Maddie Fenton stood in the doorway clad in a blue hazmat suit and took off her hood and goggles. Sam had never seen a hazmat suit before in person, but Maddie most likely needed it considering she and her husband worked as scientists from home.

"Hi, Sam! How are you?" She greeted cheerfully.

"I'm good. How are you?" Sam responded.

"Good! Come on in. I'll walk you through what you'll be doing during the week." She eagerly followed behind Maddie as she led her through the living room and stopped in the kitchen. "You see, Jack and I spend so much of our time in the lab there's hardly enough time to do anything else."

"Working full time can be tough." Sam agreed.

"No kidding." Maddie laughed lightly before her tone became stern. "First things first, the basement is off limits. Only certified scientists are allowed."

"Understood." Sam nodded.

"Good. Now, kitchen duties include wiping down the tables, counters, doing the dishes and putting them away."

"Got it."

"Every room in the house gets dusted and vacuumed. The windows get cleaned as well."

"Do the bedrooms need any maintenance?" Sam asked, causing Maddie to nod. She motioned for Sam to follow her as she headed towards the stairs. Maddie pointed to the last room down the hall once they made it to the top.

"That's our daughter Jazz's room. She's doorming at Yale, so this room isn't a priority." She informed Sam before moving to a room across the hall. "This is Jack and I's bedroom. We would just like the bed made, the windows clean, the floor vacuumed and the sheets washed once every month." Sam looked around, noticing two other doors Maddie didn't mention. One appeared to be a bathroom, but the other room had the door closed.

"What about that room?" She asked, causing a soft down to form on Maddie's face. She placed her hand on the small of Sam's back and started to lead her down the stairs.

"That room is also off limits." She said, leading her back to the kitchen. "That's our son's Danny's room. He suffered a terrible accident a few years ago." She continued, a somber look in her eyes that made Sam physically cringe.

"I'm sorry." She said genuinely, expecting Maddie to drop the subject, but she continued.

"He needs to stay in his room during the day. At night we bring him to the lab for his treatments."

"So... he's just isolated up there?" Sam asked, feeling that the poor kid didn't deserve to be alone.

"He has me, his father, his sister when she's home from break. I even let his best friend visit twice a week. He was there when the accident happened after all. It's just the best solution for everyone involved." Sam disagreed, but Maddie obviously knew way more about the situation than her, so who was she to judge?

"I understand." She said to her, ignoring the thoughts that told her differently. Maddie looked up and it seemed as though she forced the smile that appeared on her face.

"Well, things could certainly be worse." She said, walking over to the basement door. "I'll be in the lab with Jack. You can begin in any room you'd like." She finished before walking into the basement and closing the door behind her. Sam craned her neck towards where the stairs were, truly only interested in the room she was ordered to stay away from. Although curious, she knew it was best to leave it alone. For now, she decided to distract herself from any bad decisions and headed over to the full sink of dishes.

An hour later she was halfway through cleaning the living room, but she was still thinking about the mystery called Danny. She was wondering what exactly his condition was since Maddie didn't specify. All she said was that he was involved in an accident, but what exactly happened? She said he got treatment at night, so did he have some kind of disease? If he did, it probably wasn't contagious considering he was allowed to have visitors. Whatever it was, he didn't deserve to be restricted to only his room and the lab. She knew what it was like to be lonely and she couldn't imagine Danny being okay with it.

After finishing everything she had to do downstairs, she made her way to the second story of the house. She tidied up the bathroom first before moving to Maddie and Jack's bedroom. She made the bed, vacuumed, and cleaned the windows so they were crystal clear. Looking at her phone, she could see that it took her five hours to clean the entire house. Although it was a little exhausting, at least she only had to do it three times a week. As she left the bedroom, she closed the door behind her but found herself facing Danny's bedroom. She looked around the hallway, making sure the coast was clear before taking a few steps forward towards Danny's room. She carefully put her ear to the door, expecting to hear a television, a game, or even his own voice, but all she heard was silence. She found it a little odd, but she shrugged it off and assumed he was sleeping. Stepping away from the door, she turned down the hall and made her way down the stairs. At the same time, Maddie came up from the basement.

"I finished everything, Mrs. Fenton. Do you want to do a walkthrough before I go?" Sam asked her. Maddie pulled back her hoodie and goggles and waved a hand dismissively.

"That's okay. If I want anything done differently, I'll tell you next time." She responded, walking towards the kitchen. She retrieved some money from her purse before walking back to Sam and handing it to her. "I'll see you Wednesday, dear."

"Thanks, Mrs. Fenton." Sam gave her a polite smile before leaving the house and getting into her car. She tugged her seatbelt on before sighing heavily and started the engine. She glanced at the house again, seeing that the light in Danny's room was on. Even as she pulled away, she couldn't help but wonder about him and his strange condition. He was certainly a curious case, one she was determined to find out more about.

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 **Don't worry. I'm sure there are a lot of questions, but they will be answered in future chapters. This is just the prologue after all :P Please review and tell me what you think so far :D**


	2. Chapter 1

When Wednesday morning approached, Sam had every intention of sleeping in. She didn't have plans and work wasn't until three, so she was looking forward to a peaceful slumber. Unfortunately, her mother decided to wake her up by pulling the curtains apart and exposing the blinding sun right onto Sam's face.

"It's time to rise and shine, Samantha!" Pam said cheerfully.

"Are you kidding me?" Sam croaked out, placing a pillow over her head to keep the sun out of her eyes.

"You're not sleeping the entire day away. Come downstairs and join your father and me in the kitchen." Pam continued, snatching the pillow away from Sam as she passed by her bed. She groaned as her mother left her room before staring at the ceiling in agitation. She didn't understand how she came from such peppy, positive parents. In comparison to them, she was the exact opposite in every way. If she didn't know any better she would assume she was adopted, but that wasn't the case.

Eventually, Sam was able to drag herself out of bed and into the shower. It only took her twenty minutes to finish her morning routine and reluctantly climbed the stairs down to the kitchen. Her father was at the table reading the newspaper while her mother prepared him eggs at the stove. Sam joined her father who looked up momentarily from the paper to acknowledge her.

"So, Sam, how was your first day at work? You haven't mentioned anything about it at all." Pam asked her.

"It was fine." She responded, even though she had a lot of questions about the Fentons. On second thought, she could just ask her parents. They've been going to the same country club together for years. In fact, her parents are the reason she was hired. Maddie mentioned to Pam that she was thinking of hiring a housekeeper because she wanted to focus on inventing more, and Pam suggested Sam. "How do you like the Fentons, Mom?" She asked her.

"They're just the sweetest, don't you think? And they protect us from those horrid ghosts." Pam answered.

"Barely." Jeremy snorted, causing Pam to shoot him a disapproving look.

"Do you see anyone else doing anything about it?" She asked, but the only answer she got was silence. "Exactly. They may not be able to catch any, but at least they keep them away."

"Have you met their kids?" Sam continued, breaking up her parents' glaring contest.

"We only met the daughter. Jasmine, I think." Jeremy answered. "She's been to the club a few times."

"What about Danny?"

"We never met him. Jack and Maddie don't like him leaving the house ever since the accident."

"Which was...?" Sam tried to ask, but Pam turned around and set Jeremy's plate in front of him and joined them at the table with a plate for herself.

"That's what you really want to know about, isn't it?" Pam asked, causing Sam to nod in response. "Unfortunately, we don't know much about it either. It's not really our place to ask." Sam shrunk back in her chair in defeat; that certainly wasn't the answer she wanted.

"Why don't you worry about yourself? Like where you're going to go to college." Jeremy interjected, causing Sam to roll her eyes.

"I don't know what I want to do yet, Dad."

"Sam, you're nineteen. It's time you start figuring your life out."

"I will! Just let me work and save up money for now. I'll figure everything out eventually."

"You could always go into business," Pam added, but Sam only shook her head.

"You know I'm not interested in business, Mom. I'm not going to do it just because you guys do."

"You have to do something, Samantha," Jeremy said, causing Sam to look at him. "Find something, commit, then apply to schools."

"Sure," Sam said dismissively as she got up from the table. "I'll look into that now." She quickly ran back upstairs, but not to look up colleges. She went into her room and sat at her computer desk, using her laptop to try to get answers on the Fentons, but to no prevail. She sighed and crossed her arms as she sat back in her chair. It looked like she would have to do things her own way if she wanted any sort of answer.

A couple of hours later, Sam found herself back at Fenton Works for her shift. She already finished everything downstairs and started to make her way to the second floor when she noticed a green light pooling out from underneath Danny's door. Finding it odd, she slowly got closer, trying not to make any noise. She put her ear up to the door, but like last time, all she heard was silence. She assumed the light was coming from a television or something to that nature, so she shrugged it off. As she turned away, she came to a sudden stop. She looked around the hall, making sure there were no signs of Jack and Maddie before turning back to Danny's door. The least she could do was let him know that she was always here to talk to. She lightly knocked on his door and as soon as she did, the green light seemed to vanish.

"Danny? My name's Sam. I'm the housekeeper your parents hired." She told him. There was no answer or movement for that matter, but she kept going. "I just wanted to say that whatever happened to you, I'm sure I can handle it. You don't have to be alone all the time." She sighed and leaned her forehead against the door. "It really sucks to be alone." She said that part mostly to herself. Being an only child to parents that were barely home really left her lonely. She kept mostly to herself in high school as well, so she never really made any permanent friends. Forcing herself out of her thoughts, she lifted up her forehead and took a small step back.

"I won't pressure you into anything you don't want to do. If you want to talk, I'm always here." She finished saying before turning around and heading to Maddie and Jack's bedroom. She hoped that Danny would be able to open up to her eventually and know she only had good intentions at heart. While she was vacuuming the rug, she couldn't help but feel like she was being watched. She expected to see Jack or Maddie, but when she turned around there wasn't anyone there at all. She just shrugged it off, assuming she was just being paranoid and went back to work.

At the end of the night, Sam found herself collapsing onto her bed. She didn't realize how exhausting housekeeping could be. Although tired, her inner thoughts were keeping her up. She hoped Danny didn't think she was trying to intrude on his personal life. All she wanted was to be his friend and be there for him, even if it took some time. She sighed before leaning over and turning off her lamp, letting the darkness consume her.

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 **You all blew me away with all your reviews. I really didn't expect this story to gain so much popularity so quickly. Thanks to every single one of you who reviewed or favorited and followed this story. Thank you SO much :D**


	3. Chapter 2

Sam yawned as she pulled up to Fenton Works, seeing she was right on time as she parked by the curb. She shook off the fact that she didn't get much sleep last night as she got out of her car, but that's what coffee was for. Since it was her third day of work, Sam expected the same old routine she had experienced on her first two days. However, when Maddie opened the door, Sam was surprised to see her in a red cocktail dress instead of her usual blue hazmat suit.

"Wow, you look really nice Mrs. Fenton," Sam told her.

"Thank you! Jack and I usually go to the club on Friday nights," Maddie said as she let Sam in. "If we aren't back by the time you're done you can just let yourself out."

"Sure thing," She said with a nod before Maddie smiled and turned around to go upstairs. Sam guessed that was her cue to get started and decided to clean the living room first. After ten minutes had gone by, Maddie came back downstairs with Jack behind her, wearing jeans and a nice button up shirt. He left through the front door first, but Maddie stayed behind.

"Hey, Sam," she started, getting her attention, "Danny's friend Tucker is coming over soon to see him, so you can just let him in." She informed her.

"No problem. Have a great night," Sam added with a smile.

"Bye now," Maddie responded before leaving and shutting the door behind her. Sam turned back to cleaning while she got lost in her thoughts. She assumed Tucker was the friend that Maddie had mentioned to her on her first day of work. It was possible that she could get some answers out of him. She really didn't want to push herself on people, but how was she supposed to help this kid when no one would let her in? The vacuum cleaner was blaring, as well as her thoughts, and she was halfway done with the living room when she barely heard a knock on the front door. She abandoned the vacuum cleaner and hurried over to the front door, opening it to reveal a young, African American man wearing a red beret and glasses. He looked at her with a look of confusion before he began to talk.

"Uhh, who are you?" He asked.

"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?" She said back but only received a blank stare. "I'm the housekeeper." She clarified, causing his eyes to light up in realization.

"Oh! They told me about you. I just didn't expect you to be so... young," He finished, causing Sam to roll her eyes.

"There isn't an age requirement for housekeepers last time I checked," She said, crossing her arms over her chest as she eyed him up and down. Looking at him in front of her, she realized that she knew him from somewhere. "Hey, didn't we graduate Casper together?" She asked him.

"Yeah... Does that mean I can come in now?" He asked back. Sam didn't even realize that he was still standing outside the door and moved over quickly.

"Sorry. I wasn't paying attention," she told him, but he flashed her a smile.

"No worries," he said as he walked in. "So what college are you at?" He asked as she closed the door.

"None, actually. I'm not sure about what I want to do, so I'm just saving up money in the meantime. What about you?"

"Community college for now, then I'm transferring." He answered. "Why don't you do something animal related? I remember you being all about animal rights in school." She let out a small laugh, remembering how outspoken she was back then and even now.

"I'm not sure if I want a job in that field, though. I just need time to think about that stuff."

"Yeah, I understand. It'll all work out." He said. Instead of heading towards the stairs, he headed to the kitchen where he opened the fridge. "I'm just grabbing a water bottle for me and Danny. Do you want one?" He asked her, but she shook her head.

"No, I'm good." She said. The only thing she wanted was answers. For one, she wondered if Danny had told Tucker about what she had said to him if he really did hear her. "You know, if Danny ever needs anything, I'm here."

"I know that." He said, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that?" She asked. He paused for a moment, almost as if he were debating on saying more or not, but he went on.

"Danny told me about everything. Look, I understand where you're coming from, but his parents would probably freak out if they find out what you're doing."

"I don't understand why me trying to befriend him is a bad thing. Do you really agree with them keeping him locked up in this house?" She asked him, but he didn't respond right away. It was as if he too had mixed feelings on the subject.

"It's a complicated situation. Why do you care so much?"

"Because whatever Danny is going through, he doesn't have to do it alone." She said sternly, causing Tucker to stare at her. She seemed serious about the subject and he couldn't help but get the feeling that she had gone through something similar. On the other hand, maybe that's what Danny needed; someone to relate to. "Why didn't Danny ever answer back when I was trying to talk to him?" She continued. Tucker sighed and caved under her stare.

"He just doesn't let people in easily," he answered, causing Sam to sigh as well. "I should let you get back to work," Tucker said, causing her to nod. He started to walk out but turned around so he was facing her. "Hey, if you want to get him talking, mention anything space related. Then he won't shut up."

"Thanks," she said, giving him a warm smile. He smiled back before grabbing the waters and heading towards the stairs, leaving her alone. It might not have been what she was looking for, but this small bit of information was better than nothing. In fact, a smile spread across her lips as an idea formed in her head. "Anything space related, huh?" She said to herself as she turned back into the living room to finish her job. Maybe it was time for her to make a different approach.

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That night, Sam found herself on the floor in her room surrounded by newspaper and paint bottles. She was painting on a large piece of cartridge paper, working on a painting of the moon. The background was a mix of purple and blues with white dots to imitate stars and the moon was white with yellow undertones. She didn't know when she'd be able to give it to Danny after it was finished, but she would keep it with her in case the opportunity presented itself. While she examined what she had done so far, a knock on the door made her look up momentarily from her art.

"Come in!" She called out. Her grandmother opened the door and rolled on into the bedroom on her scooter.

"Hello, bubelah," Ida greeted as she rolled over to Sam.

"Hey, Grandma," Sam said back. The entire third story of the house was where Ida resigned ever since Sam was in middle school. Usually, Sam would go to her, but there were times like these where Ida would come down to spend time with her.

"It's been a while since I've seen you paint. What's the occasion?" Ida asked her.

"It's not for me. It's for Danny."

"Ah, the Fenton boy. Do you like him?" Ida questioned, causing Sam to choke on a laugh.

"No, Grams. I've never even met him. His parents won't even let him leave his room while I'm there."

"I know the whole story," Ida said, causing Sam to look at her in confusion. "Your parents told me." She clarified, making Sam nod.

"So... do you think what they're doing is right?" Sam asked.

"They're his parents, Sam. Whatever they're doing, I'm sure it's because it's what they think is best." Sam sighed and laid back so she was staring at the ceiling.

"I don't even know what happened to him. No one will tell me anything. I tried talking to Danny, but he wouldn't even open his door." She looked over at the painting that was half finished. "I heard he really likes space. That's why I decided to make him something. To try to get him to open up to me."

"You have a big heart, honey. You get that from me." Ida joked, causing Sam to smile.

"I just wish everyone else could see that. Whatever Danny is going through, he shouldn't be forced into solitude. That just... makes things worse," Sam finished, placing an arm over her eyes. Ida was silent for a moment, knowing what Sam was talking about. All of her life, Sam was always alone. Her parents were constantly coming and going because of their job and she didn't make any permanent friends during her school career. She had many struggles throughout her life that she had to deal with alone, and unfortunately, Ida didn't realize how alone she felt until she was halfway done with high school. Since then, she's tried to be there for her as much as she can, so she understood why she cared about Danny so much.

"I think this will work," Ida said, causing Sam to sit back up.

"I hope so," she added with a forced smile.

"Well, I don't want to distract you from your masterpiece. I'm going back upstairs." Ida said as she turned around and headed towards the door.

"Okay. Goodnight, Grandma." Sam called as she picked up a brush.

"Goodnight, dear," she closed the door behind her and Sam focused her attention back on her painting. She would probably need a few hours to finish it, but she was already exhausted from not sleeping last night and the long day she had. She decided to stop for now and cleaned up the mess she had made on the floor. She turned off the lights in her room and hopped into bed, pulling the covers up to her chest. She was really thankful that Tucker was able to give her this small hint, and she really hoped she was on the right track of getting Danny to talk to her and trust her. Eventually, her thoughts were drowned out by drowsiness, and she fell asleep with Danny on her mind once again.

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 **Thank you guys again so much for supporting this story. I'm glad that a lot of people like it :D I'm not sure how often I will update since I'm writing this story as I go along, but I'll try to get chapters out as soon as possible**

 **Amyway, I'll see you guys for the next chapter :)**


	4. Chapter 3

Saturday was a lazy day for Sam. She had the entire day for herself since it was one of her days off. The painting had become her first priority and she decided to dedicate the day to finishing it. She had no interruptions since her parents weren't home, which wasn't unusual. Their relationship was certainly far from normal. They spent most of their time away from home, but try to take control of her life once they returned. In her opinion, they didn't even know her well enough to try to make decisions for her, which was truly sad. Sam and her parents were extremely disconnected, but that's the way it's always been.

The painting was done by the afternoon and Sam left it to dry overnight. Sunday was supposed to be a lazy day like the one before, so she decided to take advantage of it and sleep in. However, she was woken up in the morning by her cell phone ringing. Sam groggily reached over to it, eyes widening a bit when she saw it was Maddie. She sat up and cleared her throat before picking up the call.

"Hi, Mrs. Fenton,"

"Hi, Sam! I know it's your day off, but we had people over last night and the house is a little messy. Jack and I won't have time to clean it, but you don't have to come in if you don't want to. It's your choice," Maddie added, not wanting to pressure her.

"No, it's fine. I definitely don't mind the extra cash," Sam replied, looking over at her finished painting on her dresser.

"Thanks so much! You can come at the usual time,"

"No problem. See you then," Sam said before hanging up. She sighed before throwing the blankets off her and getting up out of bed. An hour had passed by the time she had finished her usual morning routine, but she still had time to spare. Since her painting was finished she decided to go show Ida and get her opinion. She took the elevator to the third story of the house and turned down the hall to Ida's room. The door was open so Sam decided to let herself in.

"Hey, Grandma! I finished the..." She stopped when she realized the room was empty, then remembered it was Sunday. The country club had bingo on this day and Ida never missed it. Sam knew she could just show her a picture, but she was still a little sad that she wouldn't be able to see it in person. Brushing off the tiny feeling of disappointment, she rolled up her art and went downstairs to grab her miniature backpack. She carefully placed it in her bag before zipping it up and hauling it over her shoulder. Grabbing her keys, she headed to her car and stepped inside. It only took ten minutes to get to Fenton Works, and Maddie answered the door as always in her usual hazmat suit. Sam followed her to the kitchen where she put her bag in its usual spot on the counter.

"Thanks for coming in again, Sam," Maddie was telling her as Sam looked around the kitchen. The sink was full of dishes and the counters and tables were going to have to be wiped down. "It's just the downstairs that needs to be clean and the upstairs bathroom," Maddie informed her.

"No problem," Sam said. Maddie smiled before pulling her hood back over her head and disappeared into the basement. Sam walked over to the living room to see how bad it was and saw that the cushions to the couch were on the floor and the carpet needed to be vacuumed. She decided to start in the kitchen and tackled the dishes in the sink first. It took a good fifteen minutes to wash all of them and another ten to dry them and put them all back where they belonged. She was in the middle of wiping down the counters when she heard loud, frantic footsteps coming up from the basement. Jack burst through the door first clumsily with Maddie close behind.

"I'll fire up the Fenton Family Assault Vehicle!" He shouted before running out the door. Sam found herself intrigued but a little worried when she saw Maddie holding what she could only describe as a bazooka.

"According to our scanners, there's ghost activity in the park," Maddie told her, "we're going to check it out." Before Sam could even say anything, Maddie rushed off in the same direction Jack went. They jumped in the RV and drove off rather fast and recklessly down the street. Sam looked out the window to make sure they were really gone before walking to the kitchen to get her bag. Now was the perfect opportunity for her to try to talk to Danny and she didn't want to waste any time, especially since she didn't know how long his parents would be gone for. She zipped it open and took out the painting, suddenly feeling a bit nervous, but she just shook it off as she headed up the stairs. She paused outside of Danny's door and was able to hear that the TV was on inside. Letting out a breath, she raised her hand and knocked on the door. The audio coming from the TV suddenly cut off, and Sam knew he was listening.

"Hey, Danny. It's Sam," she waited for a reply and wasn't surprised when there was none. "I wanted to tell you I met your friend Tucker the other day. He seems really nice. We were talking and he told me that you really like space and the universe and stuff like that. I mean, you probably already know all this because I'm sure he told you." She felt like she was rambling, but didn't expect a response from him, so she kept going. "Anyway, with NASA in mind, I decided to make you this," she crouched down to slip the painting under his door before sitting down across from it. She could hear movement and assumed that he had approached the door to see it, but now she was scared of his thoughts on her artistry. What if it wasn't as good as she thought she painted it? What if she made mistakes she didn't see? She didn't want to force Danny to talk, but this was physically hurting her. She was about to break the silence, but a clear, tenor voice beat her to it.

"You... made this for me?" Danny asked, much to Sam's shock. She didn't think she would get him talking this early, but she wasn't complaining.

"Yeah. Is it good? You're really the only person to see it finished besides me," she said, almost feeling the need to holding her breath.

"This is honestly one of the best things anyone's ever done for me. Seriously. Thanks a lot, Sam," he said, causing a feeling of relief to flow through her. It was nice to finally have a voice to talk to after all this time.

"That's great! Really; I'm glad," she said. "Any chance of you opening the door?" She asked, staring at the barrier that separated them, but there was a long pause.

"Not yet." His answer wasn't exactly what she wanted, but she wasn't going to push him into something he wasn't comfortable with. "Where are my parents?" He asked, changing the subject before she could speak on it.

"They said there was ghost activity at the park and they were going to check it out," Sam answered, leaning back on her hands.

"Right... ghosts. What do you think of them?" She raised an eyebrow at the question and cocked her head to the side.

"Of ghosts? I don't know... I guess they would be cool if they weren't trying to hurt us. What about you?" She asked back, but he didn't answer immediately.

"Same, I guess..." he said after a few solid moments of silence. "Look, my parents could be back soon and I don't want to get you in trouble, so I'll leave you alone. Just take this," he slipped a piece of paper under the door and Sam picked it up to open it, revealing a number in black ink. "Talk to Tucker. I have a feeling you guys will get along." She folded the paper back up and stuck it in her back pocket securely.

"Thanks, Danny. This isn't the last you'll hear of me," she said as she stood up.

"I know," she heard him say as she walked away. Unbeknownst to him, a smirk had appeared on her face; he didn't know how right he was.

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 **I don't know why, but I was stuck on this chapter for a while. I'm glad I got something out for you guys, though :)**

 **Thanks again to anybody who likes this story. You guys keep me writing :D**


	5. Chapter 4

Out of all the places Tucker could have chosen to meet at, it just had to be the Nasty Burger. Sam sighed as she turned off her car and headed to the entrance where she waited for Tucker to show. They had been talking for the last three days and decided to meet up on one of her days off to talk more in-depth about things. Most people would pick a coffee shop or something of that nature, but the Nasty Burger? Sure, it was affordable and fun during teenage years, but as an adult, she just didn't find it as appealing as she used to.

Across the parking lot, she could see Tucker approaching, still wearing the same red beret she saw him in last time.

"Why the beret?" She asked, causing him to shrug.

"Fashion." He replied.

"Are you sure?" She countered as he opened the entrance door for her, snorting at her response.

"Cute." He stated sarcastically as they walked inside together. "What are you getting?" He asked her as they waited in line.

"Coffee. Black."

"Like how you like your men?" He suggested jokingly, causing Sam to squint at him menacingly.

"I won't hesitate to hurt you. You see these boots I'm wearing? Steel toes." She could almost physically see him gulp and he gave her a sheepish grin.

"I'll keep that in mind." He said, noting to himself that she was definitely as intimidating as she looked. "Why don't you get real food?"

"Because I'm vegan. Hence the black coffee," she answered, causing Tucker to gasp dramatically.

"You've already disappointed me in so many ways," he told her.

"Tragic." She said sarcastically, but she cracked and started laughing, Tucker joining her in it. Even she couldn't take herself seriously sometimes. After receiving their food and drinks, they sat down at a booth in a corner away from everybody else.

"So I've been curious about something," Tucker started, taking a bite out of his burger.

"Ask away as long as you swallow first," she said almost in disgust as he aggressively chewed.

"That country club membership is expensive, so your parents must have money, right?" He asked.

"Yeah,"

"Then why are you working for the Fenton's?"

"Because the money isn't mine, it's my parents'. I want to make my own money. There's more pride in it."

"Fair enough." He stated, sipping his drink as Sam did the same with hers. "Speaking of, what do you think of the Fenton's?"

"They seem like nice people. I don't mind working for them."

"Their fascination with ghosts doesn't bother you in any way?" He queried with an eyebrow raised.

"Why would it? The supernatural is a pretty interesting thing, don't you think?" He mentally scoffed at her answer.

"That's definitely one word to describe it," he muttered.

"Their lab must be really cool. Have you ever been down there?" She asked him, but Tucker seemed to get stiff at the question.

"I used to go down there with Danny, but not anymore." He said, but judging by his reaction, Sam could tell something bad happened down there.

"Is that what the accident was? Something happened in the lab?" She asked softly, not wanting to push him.

"To put it simply, yeah. He hasn't been the same since," he said somberly, and Sam almost felt bad for bringing it up, but he also wasn't asking her to stop.

"Do you happen to have a picture of him? I'd like to actually put a face on the person I've been talking to," Tucker dug into his pocket to take out his PDA and started to scroll through his picture reel.

"Don't you see pictures at the house?"

"I think it would be kind of invading if I started going through their family albums," Sam said with a roll of her eyes.

"Danny doesn't really do photos. I have some from freshman year, though. Before the accident." He turned his PDA around and handed it to her and she laid eyes on a picture of a young Danny smiling brightly. He had shaggy black hair and his dad's crystal blue eyes that seemed to sparkle. All things considered, he was a cute kid.

"He looks like his mom," she said as she handed Tucker his PDA back.

"He looks like both. You can see it in person," Tucker replied. He returned his attention to his food as Sam gripped her coffee cup with both hands.

"Why does he let his parents run his life? I mean, isn't he our age? He's been an adult for quite some time now." He stopped shoveling food into his mouth long enough to give her an answer.

"Yeah, but they've been drilling their beliefs into his head forever and now he thinks like them. They truly believe what they're doing is the right thing for him." Sam sighed and sipped her coffee as Tucker finished devouring his food.

"How come Danny won't let me in yet? Talking to a door isn't as fun as it sounds," she asked him as he drank what was left of his drink.

"No offense, but we aren't sure if you're trustworthy yet. I mean, yeah, we went to high school together, but we never really talked. We're kind of still strangers."

"True." She stated as she sat back in her seat. She understood their concerns, but she would never try to expose Danny or his family. It wasn't about that, it was about being there for someone who needed it the most. She just knew that if they knew more about her, they would know that they could trust her.

"You know, speaking of high school, all four years were pretty dark for me," she began, getting Tucker's attention. "I didn't have any friends and my parents were always coming and going. Looking back they were away more than they were home. You know how people say if something is important to you then you'll make the time for it? Well, my parents didn't do that for me. I love them, but a lot of the times it feels like they don't even care. I'm always alone... I always have been," she trailed off as she got lost in her thoughts. She tried to block out high school for years, and just like that, all the memories were back.

"So that's why you have an interest in Danny..." Tucker said, causing Sam to nod. "Thanks for sharing something like that with me, but why? You agreed that we don't know each other very well and that seemed kind of deep," he asked her.

"Because it's something I never told anyone before. If you guys ever decide to tell me Danny's secret, now you have one of mine. I'm definitely not one who likes to share my feelings with anyone, so I'm really trying here. Now you know something about me that really no one else knows about, so I'm going to have to trust you won't tell anyone. Danny's an exception; I'm sure you tell him everything anyway," she added as she took a drink from her coffee.

"Well, you're not wrong," he retorted with a smirk, but his expression then turned serious. "You know, if I knew how lonely you were in high school, I would have talked to you, but you were always so..." He trailed off, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"So what?" She asked.

"Intimidating." His response caused her to laugh and she raised her coffee to her lips to take another sip.

"Hey, I'm only mean to the people that deserve it. My bark is bigger than my bite," she told him, but he seemed to go deep in thought for his eyes glazed over.

"Danny's parents go out tomorrow night while you work, right?" He asked her, causing her to nod.

"Why?" She asked him.

"You should try talking to Danny again. I'll put in a good word for you." He said, causing Sam to perk up.

"Really?" She asked.

"Yeah, really." He confirmed as he got up with his tray in his hand. He tossed all his empty wrappers and containers into a nearby garbage can before turning back to Sam. "So, there's an arcade nearby. Are you down?" He asked her. She chugged the remainder of her coffee before crushing the cup in her hand and throwing it into the same trash can.

"Oh, you have no idea what you just got yourself into." She told him amusingly as they both ran out the exit together.

* * *

 **It looks like the beginning of a beautiful friendship... hopefully XD**

 **Thank you guys again for all the love and support. I appreciate it more than you'll ever know :D**


	6. Chapter 5

A few hours after sunrise on Friday morning, Sam awoke groggily to her alarm clock screeching at her. She quickly grabbed her phone from off her nightstand and was more than happy to silence the horrid thing. Sighing, she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and looked around her room as her eyes adjusted. _Another day, another dollar_ , she thought to herself as she rose from her bed.

After she had finished getting ready for the day she grabbed her backpack and went down to the kitchen, not shocked to see her parents weren't home, but what else was new. As she placed her backpack on one of the kitchen counters, she could hear what sounded like loud banging coming from the basement. Ida must have been in the middle of a bowling session, so Sam headed towards the basement door to see her. As Sam made her way to the bottom of the stairs, she could see Ida at the first lane just finishing up.

"Two hundred? Damn Grandma, you're killing it today," Sam said as she got closer to her.

"I was doing better before. Want to play against me?" Ida asked, but Sam shook her head.

"I can't. I'm leaving for work soon," she replied. On her scooter, Ida rolled over to a nearby bowling ball rack to place her ball in.

"Right. How's it going with the Fenton boy?" Ida queried as she moved closer to Sam.

"Better than I expected, actually," she answered with a smile.

"So you're making progress?"

"Yeah. I'm hoping I'll be able to talk to him tonight after his parents leave,"

"You know, if the boy likes space, I think I have some old articles and newspapers from after the first moon landing in a box in my closet. You can give him a few," Ida said, causing Sam to perk up.

"Really? I can just give them to him?" She asked to be sure.

"Of course. As long as you leave me some," Ida responded with a smile.

"I will. Thanks, Grandma," Sam leaned down to give her a quick kiss on the top of her head before running up two flights of stairs to get to Ida's room. She stepped into the walk-in closet and spotted a cardboard box on the floor in the corner filled with old clippings from articles about a number of things. She only grabbed one article and one newspaper about the moon landing and left the rest for Ida like she said she would. Folding them carefully, she returned to the kitchen and gently placed them in her backpack.

Once she got to Fenton Works, she was faced with the same routine. She arrived on time, started in the kitchen, but Jack and Maddie left for the country club later than last time. Nevertheless, it took the usual few hours to clean and vacuum everything downstairs and upstairs. When Sam was done, she messaged Maddie to let her know and would usually leave right after, but tonight was different. Although she told Maddie she had left, she had other plans. She jogged up the stairs quickly and stopped outside of Danny's door. It sounded like he was playing some sort of game inside, but the audio stopped after she knocked on the door.

"Hey, it's me," she said as she sat cross-legged in front of the door, assuming he would be able to recognize her by her voice by now.

"Again?" He asked teasingly from inside, causing Sam to roll her eyes playfully.

"You're the one allowing it, you know," she told him, hearing him chuckle at her response.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I'm guessing my parents left for the club already?"

"Yeah, like two hours ago. They really like it there, huh?"

"Well, yeah. It's really the only place where they socialize with others," Sam tilted her head to the side as she fixated her gaze on the white door in front of her.

"It's weird that we probably never would have met if it weren't for our parents and that stupid country club," she pointed out.

"Stupid? Sounds like you dislike it,"

"I do. I've only gone a few times and it wasn't fun. It's just a bunch of rich people in one place with their snobby kids who think they're entitled to everything, including me. I didn't find it charming," she added with a roll of her eyes, remembering how almost every guy that talked to her expected more than just a conversation.

"That's messed up. I've never actually stepped foot inside before. My sister has, though. If she had the same problem, she never said anything about it. On the other hand, maybe she didn't tell me because I would overreact... with my fists," he added, causing her to laugh.

"Well, you're a good brother for wanting to protect your sister. I respect that," she said to him, and there was a long pause before Danny asked her a question she didn't think she would hear for a long time.

"Do you want to come in?" It was almost as if she froze for a second, but she forced herself to rise from the floor and give him an answer.

"Only if you want me to," she responded, and she mentally prepared herself as the door swung open. With the way Maddie talked about him, she assumed he would have some kind of deformity, disfigurement or even some kind of IV or oxygen tank. To her utter surprise, he looked like a regular, healthy young adult. He had to had been at least six feet tall, and the tank top he wore showed he was lean and fit. He looked the same as the photo Tucker had shown her earlier, just a little bit older. His black hair was a bit overgrown, falling into a pair of icy blue eyes that pierced into hers. To say the least, he was the opposite of what she expected.

"Well, are you going to come in, or are you going to stand there all day?" He asked playfully, with a slight smile on his face. She realized she was probably staring at him and tried not to blush as she swiftly entered the room. The walls were plastered with posters of all different kinds, but above his computer desk was the drawing she gave to him. "I wasn't lying when I said I loved it," Danny commented, watching her stare at the piece of artwork.

"I know you weren't." She said back, turning to face him. "You know, I wasn't expecting you to look like... you." She finished lamely, causing him to flash her a small smile.

"There's a lot more wrong to me than meets the eye. My... injuries are more on the inside than outside."

"And you're alright being isolated from the rest of the world?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Danny was silent for a moment before answering.

"My parents say it's what's best for me. They're the ones who have my best interests at heart." He answered.

"You also have a mind of your own."

"And I agree with them... somewhat,"

"Somewhat?" She questioned.

"I sneak out sometimes. If they knew, they'd freak," he said with a roll of his eyes.

"Why is it so wrong for you to leave the house?" She asked, but he bit his lip as if he was holding back.

"It's complicated," he replied, and it was obvious he wasn't ready to tell her yet, so she changed the subject.

"So why did you decide to let me in? Tucker?" She queried. He sat down on the edge of the bed and patted the spot next to him, signaling that he wanted her to do the same to which she obeyed.

"Yeah. After he told me what you said, I get why you care so much. And I appreciate you sharing your secrets. I know why you did." She knew she was probably still staring at him, but she couldn't stop herself from looking into his blue eyes.

"Well, I'm glad you did. Your door was starting to get boring to stare at," she said jokingly, causing him to give her a crooked smile.

"So I heard you and Tucker had a good time at the arcade yesterday," he stated, making her nod.

"Yeah, he learned the hard way that I'm the master of all games. Video games included,"

"Oh, yeah?" He asked with an eyebrow raised as he rose from the bed. He walked over to his television set where two PS4 controllers sat and picked both of them up before tossing one to her, which she caught successfully. "Prove it." He said, and she looked up at him to flash him a smug smirk.

"You're gonna regret this," she told him as he sat back down next to her.

"Something tells me you're a trash talker," he inquired with a smile which Sam returned.

"The trashiest." She confirmed. The next half hour only proved their statements, and Danny found himself dumbstruck at her knowledge of every game they played. No matter how good he thought he was, she ended up destroying him at almost every turn. He turned his head to stare at her in amazement and with maybe even a smidgen of jealousy.

"How?" Was the only thing he was able to ask, causing her to laugh.

"Would you like me to use one hand?" She asked teasingly, causing him to snort.

"No need to rub it in. For a guy who's spent sixty percent of the last five years playing video games, I thought I was pretty good,"

"You're forgetting I barely had friends in high school. What else was I supposed to do besides play games? And you are good," she paused so he could look at her before she smirked, "I'm just better." He threw a pillow her way which she was able to successfully dodge before he stood up.

"Charming. Real charming," he told her sarcastically, yet there was an amused smile on his face. He turned to open the bedroom door and motioned for her to follow him. "Do you want a drink or something?"

"I'm good, thanks." She trailed behind him as they went down to the kitchen where he grabbed a water bottle from out of the refrigerator. Sam saw her backpack still sitting on the counter and remembered she had brought something for him.

"Oh, I have something cool you might like," she said as she went over to it to pull out the articles. Danny placed his water down on the kitchen table and walked over to take a closer look at it. "They're from 1969. Both about the first moon landing," she handed both over to him and he started to flip through them curiously.

"This is wicked cool. Where did you get these?"

"My grandma. She has a bunch of them all about different things. She wanted you to have these," Sam told him as she crossed her arms across her chest. He paused to look up at her and raised an eyebrow.

"You talk to your grandma about me?" He queried, and Sam tried not to blush in embarrassment.

"She's kind of the only person I talk to. She doesn't know much," she added, not wanting him to think she was exposing him in any way, but Danny only smiled.

"Only good things, I hope," he said, causing her to nod.

"Of course," he looked back down at the newspapers before folding them up gently.

"Well, thanks a lot for these. I can't wait to show Tucker," he fished his phone out of his pocket to message Tucker, but simultaneously received one from Maddie. He stared at the screen for a brief second before stuffing it back into his pocket. "My parents are on their way home," he informed her.

"That's my cue to leave," she stated, grabbing her backpack and hauling it over her shoulder. She and Danny both walked over to the door where Sam turned to say goodbye. "Will I see you Monday?" She asked, causing him to nod.

"Most likely," he answered, making a soft smile appear on her face.

"Good. See you then," he watched her leave before closing the door, leaving it unlocked for his parents. It wouldn't be long before they would be home, and he knew the drill once they were. He went up to his room and closed the door before he faced his dresser mirror. A flash of light appeared from his midsection and lit up the room. Two rings of light started moving in opposite directions, turning his hair white, his blue eyes a glowing green, and his regular tank top and sweats turned into a black and white hazmat suit. He looked over his form like he did thousands of times before. He didn't think something like this was possible when he entered that horrid ghost portal, yet here he was. Since then he and his parents would all go down to the basement where they would try out different scientific concoctions to try to cure his ghost half, finding it a curse rather than a blessing. Unfortunately, that's what Danny was convinced he was: a curse. Sighing, he tore his eyes away from the mirror and reluctantly headed to the basement to wait for his parents' arrival.

* * *

 **Ooooh-weeee that chapter was a lot longer than I thought it would be, but hopefully entertaining.** **Since I'm actually getting a lot of reviews, I think I'm going to start doing replies next chapter, so please r &r :D**


	7. Chapter 6

Danny had only waited for about ten minutes before his parents entered the basement, no longer in their formal outfits from before. Now they were clad in the hazmat suits that they practically lived and breathed in, to the point where Danny was surprised that they actually didn't sleep in them as well. He sat down on the edge of a metal table while Maddie and Jack walked over to the table parallel to it. They reached for a tube filled with a dull orange liquid before sticking a needle into it. _Great, a shot_ , Danny thought to himself. It wasn't that he was afraid of needles, it was the worry that too many needle pricks in the wrong places would get people thinking the wrong idea of him.

"What's this supposed to do?" He asked them as Maddie walked over to him, needle in hand.

"To put it simply, it's something to try to flush the ectoplasm out of your system... if our calculations are correct." Danny tried not to scoff at her answer; they've been saying that for a while now.

"What are the symptoms?" He inquired, knowing that most of these experimental antidotes usually had a few, and the guilty look she gave him told him it wouldn't be good.

"Flu-like symptoms," she answered reluctantly, causing Danny to sigh, but at the same time, a blue mist escaped from his mouth. He learned a long time ago that this was something that only happened when another ghost was around, hence why he referred to it as his ghost sense.

"A ghost is nearby. I can take care of it," he said as he rose from the table, but Maddie put an arm out to stop him from moving any further.

"Stop trying to fight ghosts, Danny," she told him, like many times before. "Your father and I will handle it like we always do. You could get hurt," Danny tried not to roll his eyes at her response. They weren't aware of it, but sometimes he'd sneak out if he detected any ghosts. The only ones who knew about it were Tucker and Jazz; the only people he trusted with his emotions and thoughts. It wasn't too often, but if he had these powers he thought he'd might as well use them. Even if he did get hurt, he learned over the years that he healed faster than the average human. He'd rather have himself get hurt over his parents any day.

"Just stay here, son. We'll be back," Jack told him as Maddie placed the needle down onto the lab table. Without another word, they both ran out of the basement, leaving Danny to himself. He sighed to himself before checking the time on his phone and immediately went to the video chat app. As he made his way up to his room, he decided to call Jazz since it wasn't too late. He sat down at his computer desk and only waited a few moments before she answered on her laptop.

"How bored are you right now that you're calling me?" She asked jokingly right away, causing him to snort.

"What if I missed you?"

"Not probable," she countered, causing him to laugh.

"You know, sometimes you make it hard to miss you. You're pretty annoying." He expected her to get mad at the jab, but she just smirked.

"Ditto," she stated, "so what's up?"

"Just the same old shit."

"Are Mom and Dad still out?"

"They came home to try to give me a new treatment, but a ghost interrupted, and I'm glad," he sighed and rested his arms down on the desk, "I'm getting really tired of it. All they do is make me sick."

"Well, you know my standpoint on it. There's no use trying to fix something that isn't broken," she said, causing Danny to raise his eyebrows.

"Something that isn't broken? What's going on with me isn't normal,"

"It's _definitely_ not normal, but it's also not hurting you in any way. If anything, you have an advantage over everybody else!" Danny looked down, and Jazz could sense his confusion. Their parents seemed to only see the bad side of his powers, but there were plenty good about them as well. "Come on. Don't pretend like a part of you doesn't think your powers are cool," she said with a crooked smile which Danny returned.

"They _can_ be pretty cool," he admitted, but his face twisted in distraught, "but face it, Jazz. I'll never be accepted by society like this."

"You could always be the one to change that," she said softly, but it was clear he was unsure of himself. Not wanting to make the mood any darker, she decided to change the subject. "So, what else is going on?" She questioned, and Danny paused for a moment to reflect back on the last few weeks.

"Nothing really," he answered with a shrug.

"How's Tucker?"

"He's fine. I'll see him tomorrow and Monday,"

"What have you guys been up to? Anything new?" She continued to ask, causing Danny to roll his eyes.

"There's never anything new. All I do is workout, play video games, hang out with Tucker and read," he answered, leaning back in his chair.

"Well, I heard about Mom and Dad hiring a housekeeper. Do we trust her? To not take anything, I mean," Danny found himself scoffing in exasperation at the question.

"No way! Her family's loaded. She has no reason to take anything. And even if her family didn't have money, she's not the type of person to steal,"

"And how would you know?" Jazz asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Because I've kind of been talking to her," he admitted almost guiltily, knowing it broke the rules, and Jazz was fully aware of it as well. She only sighed and gave him a disapproving look.

"I'm assuming Mom and Dad have no idea,"

"No, and please don't say anything to them," he pleaded to her, "She's really cool and actually cares about me. Do you remember Sam Manson?" Jazz suddenly looked surprised, as if she didn't expect her out of all people to be hired by her parents.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure she was in Tucker's grade. I didn't really talk to her in high school, but it's clear from her activism that she's always trying to do the right thing," Danny scrunched his eyebrows together in confusion.

"Like protesting? About what?"

"Animal rights, women's rights, equality, you name it," she said with a wave of her hand.

"So, you won't tell Mom and Dad?" She gave him a strange look before grabbing a hair tie off screen to put her hair in a ponytail.

"You're an adult, Danny. You do what you want. I don't want to keep you from your future girlfriend,"

"What? No! She's just a friend," he defended.

"Uh-huh, that's what you said about Valerie after Mom pulled you out of high school. Next thing I know you're sneaking out to see her. I didn't tell back then and I won't tell now."

"I'm not sneaking out to see her," he said matter of factly.

"Yet," she added, causing him to scoff.

"Cut it out, okay?"

"Just use protection," he put his hands over his ears as if the words physically hurt them.

"Jesus, Jazz! _This_ is what I mean. _This_ is why it's hard to miss you!" He exclaimed, but she only laughed in response.

"You can't wait for me to get back,"

"On the contrary," he replied with a roll of his eyes.

"Maybe I can help you ghost fight once in a while when I come home for the holidays," she added, but Danny shook his head.

"Mom and Dad can _never_ know about that. If I start bringing you it's going to be way harder to hide,"

"We'll think of something," she said, waving a hand in dismissal. Danny was about to protest, but he could hear a commotion from downstairs followed by Maddie calling his name. He sighed and slumped his shoulders, giving Jazz a defeated look.

"I have to go back down to the basement," he told her, and she couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She knew the last thing he wanted was pity, but she just felt bad knowing he was struggling, especially without her there to comfort him.

"You can call me back tomorrow," she said, wanting him to have something to look forward to. He only gave her a forced smile as he stood up.

"I will. Talk to you then." He closed out the call and left his phone face down on his desk before turning to leave his room. These experimental treatments either didn't affect him at all or affected him so much that it started to damage him. He trusted his parents and knew they were doing their best, but sometimes he really considered stopping treatment altogether. There were only so many chances he could give before getting sick of all the failed attempts. His patience was wearing thin and it was only a matter of time before he broke away from all of it.

* * *

 **Sorry for such a long wait D: Like I said before, I don't have anything planned, so I'm writing this as I go along. Thank all of you for your continued interest in this story, though :D**

 **Time for review replies :P**

 **Musiclover435: Yes, Tucker does know about his ghost half. I think it's the first chapter where Maddie says that Tucker was there when the accident happened :)**

 **Invader Johnny: Exactlyyy ;D**

 **Fan12: LMAO yes**

 **Guest: I know T.T  
**

 **Guest: Thank you :)  
**

 **Chloee0x0: Yessss! XD**

 **MidnightWriter44678: Thank you so much!**

 **wiseguy2415: I'm not sure if I explain this in future chapters since I have none planned, so I'll answer the question here. Danny wouldn't open the door at first because, if you think about it, his emotions can end up controlling his powers. When he's angry his eyes glow green, when he's nervous he slips in and out of intangibility unwillingly. He wanted to make sure he was able to talk to Sam without exposing his powers yet in any way. That was kind of a long explanation for such a simple question XD**

 **Guest: Thank you :)**

 **sammansonrepilica: I know they're so adorable and I obviously love writing them together. Thanks :D**


	8. Chapter 7

The past weekend ended up being more unpleasant than Danny expected it to be. On Saturday he woke up with a headache that he couldn't get rid of and by Sunday he was bedridden with awful flu symptoms. He basically slept into Monday but didn't feel any better than the previous day when he awoke. Medicine wouldn't help since the symptoms weren't being caused by a real virus, so all he could do was drink water and take ibuprofen. He decided to stay in bed all morning since the only thing he had planned was for Tucker to come over later after class. When the afternoon rolled by painfully slow, Danny knew that Sam would be downstairs working and was getting restless, so he decided to go see her. He hauled himself out of bed and ignored the roaring headache that made him groan to himself. When he got to the bottom of the stairs, he could see Sam in the living room, cleaning the windows to perfection.

"Hey, Sam," he greeted from behind her, and she turned around to ask why he was down here with her while his parents were home, but she stopped when she noticed he didn't look very good. His skin was pale and he had harsh, gray bags under his eyes. It looked like his face was in a permanent grimace and his right hand was placed over his stomach as if he were clutching it in pain.

"Are you okay?" She asked, setting the used paper towels and spray bottle of glass cleaner aside.

"I'm just sick. Don't worry, it's not contagious," he added quickly, but weakly.

"Then why are you down here?"

"How else was I supposed to see you," he replied as he walked over to the sofa to sit down before he put his head in his hands as if the movement made him dizzy. Although Sam thought it was sweet, he didn't have to do all that if he felt this horrible just from moving. She quickly moved to occupy the empty seat next to him on the couch.

"You could have just waited to call my name when you heard me upstairs," she said, causing him to wave a hand in dismissal.

"I'm an impatient person," he responded groggily, and Sam found herself rubbing his back in an attempt to comfort him. "This would be a lot easier if I could just text you," he told her, causing her to stop her circular hand movements on his back briefly.

"Is that your lame way of asking me for my number?" She joked, making him turn to face her.

"I'm not lame, you just offend me. You text Tucker but not me?"

"You're the one who gave me his number in the first place!" She exclaimed with a slight smile, finding his response amusing. "You could have given me yours too, but no. You had to be all mysterious," she went on, causing Danny to choke on a laugh.

"Hey, I-" he stopped and turned his body away to avoid coughing near her, clutching his head again after he was done. "Ow," he complained softly, and Sam stood up and held out her hands.

"Come on. You're going back upstairs to rest," she commanded as she gently helped him off the couch.

"Are you going to text me?" She scoffed and rolled her eyes as she guided him up the stairs.

"Yes, I will text you," she agreed as they entered his room. Danny lied down on his bed and immediately grabbed his phone from his pocket and handed it to Sam. Swiftly, she added her contact in before handing it back to him.

"You're getting added to a group text with me and Tucker," he stated, and she let out a defeated sigh.

"I was afraid of that," she groaned as she turned away. "Get some rest," she demanded as she closed his door on the way out. She quickly jogged back down the stairs to proceed cleaning the living room. After finishing up the windows, she retrieved a broom to sweep the floor in the kitchen. She found a dustpan and used it to pile on all the dirt and other waste as she went along. There was a knock on the door soon after, causing Sam to cast the broom aside to answer it. Tucker was standing there patiently, and Sam was surprised he even came considering what shape Danny was in.

"Hey," she greeted, stepping aside so he could walk in.

"Hey, Sam. What's up?" He asked her as she closed the door behind him.

"Nothing new regarding me, but Danny's upstairs as sick as a dog. I'm glad someone is here to entertain him," she told him, making him look up at her.

"Danny's not sick. He's having bad side effects to a new treatment he's on," he told her truthfully before walking into the kitchen. Sam paused for a moment before following his trail to the refrigerator where he took out the usual two water bottles.

"Do they at least help him?" She asked, but Tucker's somber look answered her question. "So he's basically suffering in vain?"

"Danny hasn't exactly said no to any of this. If he didn't want to go through this, he would say something. Until then, he's got to deal with his choices," Tucker responded before heading towards the stairs.

"What do YOU think is the right choice for him?" Sam asked him before he could take the first step.

"It doesn't matter what I want. My job is to help Danny figure out what HE wants, and he's constantly going back and forth. Considering you're just as headstrong and stubborn as him, maybe you should be the one talking to him,"

"How am I supposed to do that if no one will tell me what's wrong in the first place?" She asked as she crossed her arms over her chest with an eyebrow raised. Tucker only turned to make his way up the stairs.

"In due time, Manson. In due time," was the only response she got from him. He disappeared at the top of the stairs and Sam only rolled her eyes; nothing was ever easy. She only went back to cleaning, picking up the dustpan and bringing it over to the garbage to empty it. Only an hour went by before Danny started messaging her, asking if she was able to come up to his room. Maddie nor Jack had come up from the basement once yet, so she decided to make it a quick visit. She hurriedly made her way up the stairs and entered Danny's room without knocking where he was in his bed, but playing video games with Tucker who was occupying a seat on the edge.

"Isn't that hurting your head?" She asked him, but Danny only shrugged.

"It's better than being bored," he told her.

"Do you need anything?"

"Yeah," Tucker spoke up before nodding towards the television, "we can't figure out this part of GTA. Have you played it?" He asked, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"I could get fired for being found up here and you're risking that for a video game?" She questioned, but they only nodded as an answer. Letting out a frustrated sigh, she snatched the controller from Tucker who was closer to her and took over. They watched her in almost amazement as she was able to easily accomplish their challenge on the first try in a few minutes while the two of them wasted so much time fumbling around with no answers.

"You haven't beaten this game yet?" She queried, handing Tucker's controller back over to him.

"It's only been out for a few weeks," Tucker said, and Sam paused before she shrugged.

"Either way. It took me three days, tops," she turned around to head towards the door but stopped before she crossed the threshold. "It's too risky for me to keep coming up here. I have to stay downstairs," she told them sternly.

"When you get home you should play with me and Tucker online," Danny told her, but she gave him a disapproving look.

"You should be resting."

"I've had plenty of rest and will get more. Right now, I'm having the fun I was deprived of this past weekend." She only rolled her eyes at his response before leaving without another word. Danny's stare lingered on the door for a moment before looking back at the game, and Tucker was the one to speak up first.

"You seem to have taken a liking to her, huh?" He asked, causing Danny to make eye contact with him.

"Yeah. I mean, we've only talked a few times, but she seems really nice and genuine. I feel like she gets us because she's the same as us."

"Loners?" Tucker guessed, causing Danny to nod.

"Exactly."

"She's never had any permanent friends. Just people who come and go. I only remember her dating one guy, and if I'm remembering correctly, it didn't end well." Danny hummed as he picked up his water bottle from his nightstand.

"We've all been there," he said, taking a few sips before screwing the cap back on. "Anyway, the best way to figure out if she's trustworthy is to talk to her more."

"Well, _I've_ been talking to her since you first gave me her number," Tucker stated matter of factly, getting Danny's attention. "In my opinion, Sam's great. She's brutally honest, open-minded, AND she's a pro at video games!"

"Do you... like her?" Danny asked out of curiosity, thinking it was Tucker that was the one who was taking a liking to her, but his face twisted into a grimace.

"I'm not into her if that's what you're asking. She's just cool. Like you said, I feel like she fits in with us. If anything, she's like a naggy sister."

"Sounds like her and Jazz would get along," Danny joked, but Tucker scoffed in rejection.

"I doubt it. At least not at first. They're both smart and independent, so I would expect a lot of head-butting between them," he answered.

"I guess," Danny responded before putting his controller down. The movement from the game was making him dizzy, so he turned his head in the opposite direction and closed his eyes, leaving Tucker to play on his own.

"You okay?" He asked, getting a chaste nod from Danny.

"Yeah. Just in pain." Tucker glanced over at him, noticing the grimace that stretched across his face.

"Maybe you should stop the treatment," he suggested, but Danny's answer didn't come right away. He only ended up responding with a shrug that Tucker could barely notice before speaking up.

"If I don't get better in a few days then I will. I can't see myself lasting any longer than that anyway. The flu is the worst." He turned so his back was to the TV, feeling nauseous from his previous gameplay.

"Do you need a bucket?" Tucker asked, hearing him groan in pain.

"I'll be okay." He answered in a weak voice, but he couldn't even convince himself. Tucker didn't want to look anymore and directed his attention back to his game. Even though Danny has had bad reactions to experimental treatments before it didn't make it any easier every time he got sick. He couldn't stand to see his best friend in pain, especially over something he hadn't quite made a decision about yet.

"Have you thought of stopping altogether?" He asked cautiously but was greeted with silence again before a response was given.

"I don't know," Danny sighed before pulling the blanket closer to him. "I'm gonna try to nap. You can keep playing if you want."

"Alright, dude," Tucker answered, trying his best to hide the hint of annoyance in his voice. He knew Danny has been conflicted on his thoughts about his situation for a long time and he has always offered his guidance, but Danny was always deflecting him when he tried to bring it up. The only person that was as stubborn and headstrong as Danny was Sam, and he hoped she would be able to team up with him to help push Danny in the right direction.

* * *

 **Wow. I'm sooo sorry for how long it's been since I've updated D: But as I said, this is an ongoing story, so I'm writing as I go. I just hope you guys like it :3**

 **Guest: Thanks a lot. I'm glad you like how it's going so far :D**

 **Invader Johnny: If that happens, Sam may be out of a job to say the least XD**

 **MidnightWriter44678: Aww thanks a bunch :]**

 **Purplerox: She is, isn't she :3**

 **sammansonrepilica: LMAO Sam's grandma is a badass. We all love her**


	9. Chapter 8

"We just destroyed that guy in a matter of minutes!" Sam exclaimed, eyes glued to the laptop screen that displayed her and Tucker's gameplay of their favorite online game, Doom. Her phone was balanced against her computer screen so her and Tucker could video chat at the same time, making it easier to communicate. "I would give you a high five, but I physically can't," she continued, causing Tucker to wave a hand in dismissal.

"Not necessary, but I appreciate the gesture," he told her.

"Wanna keep going?" She asked, but he yawned and rubbed his eyes, and Sam guessed he was about to call it quits.

"It's one in the morning, so I'm gonna tap out. We can play again tomorrow, though," he said, giving her the response she expected.

"Heard on that. Text me tomorrow,"

"Count on it." He mocked saluted her before he ended their call, leaving Sam to play alone, which she didn't mind. Alone is how she first started and ended up becoming one of the most powerful characters in the game, so it was no problem for her at all. She hadn't been playing long when she got another video chat call, something she wasn't expecting. She thought it would be Tucker again, maybe changing his mind about playing another game, but it was Danny's ID that was flashing on her screen. Raising an eyebrow, she answered the call, hoping it wasn't any sort of emergency. Her phone revealed Danny, still in the same place she saw him earlier that day; in bed.

"Hey, is everything okay?" She asked him, causing him to nod in response.

"Yeah, I just can't sleep. Tucker said you would be up, so I hope you don't mind me calling," he started to say, but Sam shook her head.

"I don't mind at all. I need the company since Tucker ditched me in Doom. Want to take his place?"

"I can't. I'd probably throw up, which I've been doing all night anyway, but no need to make it worse."

"You're vomiting now? It sounds like you're just getting worse," she said with a cringe, causing Danny to sigh.

"I'll be okay. It will just take time."

"I wish there was a way I could help," Danny flipped over in his bed so he was lying on his stomach, stretching out his arm to keep his phone in front of him.

"Just... keep talking to me. It keeps my mind off the fact that I'm suffering." There was a slight pout on his face, and Sam found herself chuckling at him.

"Are you trying to make me feel bad so I can keep showering you with attention?" She teased amusingly, causing a small smile to spread across his face.

"Why? Is it working?" Sam scoffed and shook her head before closing out Doom and shutting her laptop closed.

"What can I say? You got me," she told him, getting up from her computer desk and making her way to her bed. "If it makes you feel any better, this one time when I was sick, I ended up throwing up all over my butler's shoes." She finished as she sat cross-legged on her bed. At first, he seemed to laugh, but stopped suddenly and raised an eyebrow.

"Did you say butler?" He asked, and her face paled at the realization that she had revealed too much. She didn't want anyone to know about her family's financial status, not even Tucker knew the full extent of it yet, and here she was blabbering about it to someone that wasn't very close to her, even if she was trying to change that.

"I definitely didn't mean to," she muttered, trying not to slap herself in the face for being so careless. Danny knew her parents had money from Tucker, but obviously, he didn't know the half of it. He could tell by her reaction that she shared something she shouldn't have, so he tried to make it better with a deal.

"Was I not supposed to know that? I could tell you something you're not supposed to know in return," he suggested, but Sam shook her head.

"I'm not really about invading people's privacy."

"It's not invading if I'm the one telling you," she was still going to deny his request, but he decided not to wait for her response and tell her anyway. "I'm not really sick, I'm just on a new treatment. They tend to have bad side effects." Of course, Sam already knew that because of Tucker, but she didn't want to expose him and have Danny be upset with him, so she acted like it was the first time she was hearing about it.

"What do you mean?"

"My parents try to create new cures for what I have, but they usually just give me bad side effects."

"None of them have worked so far?" She asked him, but he only shook his head. "Aren't you tired of them by now?" His gaze went from her to something off-screen, as if he was afraid to make eye contact.

"It's complicated." Was his answer, one that he gave her a lot. She wasn't going to push him, though. The last thing she wanted was to be abrasive.

"You're probably going crazy locked in your room. Don't you miss leaving the house?" She asked, and Danny rolled over onto his side.

"It's not like I've been locked inside my house for five years even though I'm sure that's the way Tucker made it sound. As long as I was with either of my parents, I was allowed to go out with them as long as it wasn't too long. _Especially_ with Jazz. They trusted her so much that I could go almost anywhere with her, but after she left for college it stopped. She's thousands of miles away now and Mom and Dad are always busy in the lab. Even when they do go out, they don't tell me they're leaving."

"You can't go out with Tucker?" She asked, but Danny paused as if carefully choosing what he wanted to say.

"They love Tucker, but I don't know. Maybe they know we would get into nothing but trouble together," he added with a small chuckle, causing Sam to laugh as well.

"Oh, for sure. You and Tucker are really a couple of rule breakers," she said sarcastically, causing Danny to laugh.

"For real! We used to get in so much trouble in middle school. The only reason Tucker never got detention in high school is because I wasn't there with him. Add me to the equation and I guarantee detention would be a weekly thing."

"How long have you guys been friends for?" She asked out of curiosity.

"Twelve consecutive years."

"Damn, that's a marriage right there," she said, causing Danny to laugh.

"Yeah, it's definitely been a while." His mood seemed happier than before, but he suddenly closed his eyes and turned his head away, although Sam could still see a grimace on his face.

"You should try to sleep, Danny. Rest is the best medicine, you know,"

"Yeah, yeah," he suddenly heard a knock on his door, and he decided to wrap the conversation up, knowing it was one of his parents. "I gotta go. I'll probably talk to you tomorrow," he told her.

"Okay. Sleep tight." He hung up his phone and tossed it over onto his nightstand before letting the person at the door know they could come in. Maddie walked in with a bottle of water, closing the door behind her.

"Was that Jazz you were talking to?" She asked him, placing the water bottle on his table next to his phone.

"Yeah, she's doing okay," he lied, pulling the blanket up towards himself. "What are you still doing up?"

"Dad and I just finished in the lab. I wanted to check on you and see how you were doing," Danny groaned as he rolled onto his back.

"Not good. I've been vomiting for hours now. Just let death take me," he said, causing Maddie to scoff at his dramatics.

"You'll be okay," she said, taking a glove off her right hand to feel his forehead. "Hmm, you still have a fever."

"If I keep getting worse, I'm calling it quits. I hate being sick, especially with the flu," he told her, and he noticed the disappointment in her eyes.

"Are you sure you don't want to hold out for another few days? Maybe it will start to adjust,"

"That's what all the other ones were supposed to do, but they didn't. Mom, I feel like I'm getting the life drained out of me. I can't hold on much longer." She sighed, but she wasn't going to put him through any more pain when he was begging for a way out.

"It's your choice, Danny. Just hold on as long as you can, okay?" He only sighed and nodded as she looked around his room. There were tissues and empty water bottles everywhere, and she knew Danny wasn't going to be able to clean it in the state he was in, so she slipped her glove back on and decided to tidy everything up since it was the one room Sam wasn't allowed to go in. Speaking of, Danny decided now was the perfect excuse to ask for a way out of his room while she was here working.

"Hey, Mom. Do you think I can come out of my room when Sam is here? I've been cooped up in here for days, I need to escape." Maddie almost dropped the empty water bottles she was holding as she whipped around to look at him.

"Danny, you know how important concealing your powers are. If anyone finds out, they could report you to the government or worse!" He tried not to roll his eyes at the response he had already gotten hundreds of times before.

"She's not going to find out," _Well, not yet_ , he thought to himself, but what Maddie didn't know wouldn't hurt her, right? She only scoffed and turned back around to pick up more garbage, this time aggressively throwing everything into the small garbage pale next to his bed.

"Your emotions take over your powers. What if you get nervous or get angry? You have your father's temper, you know," she continued, only making Danny more annoyed.

"Does it look like I'm having temper tantrums all the time? No. I've had these powers for four years and I can handle them." Maddie didn't stop cleaning, but she was shaking her head silently, and he couldn't tell if it was in disbelief or disapproval. "All I'm asking is to be able to roam around my own house. _Especially_ after this. If I'm confined inside my room any longer, I'm going to lose my sanity. Please, Mom?" She sighed as she picked up the last few tissues and dropped them into his garbage can. Once she did, she stood by his bed with one hand on her hip, looking down on him sternly.

"Fine, but tread carefully. If you feel like your emotions might get the best of you for some reason, go in your room or come down to the lab," she agreed reluctantly. If Danny wasn't so sick he would've jumped in excitement. Now he could talk to Sam whenever she was over as long as both his parents were down in the lab.

"Of course. Thanks, Mom. I'm going to try to sleep now," he replied as he rolled over onto his left side.

"Okay." Maddie let her stare linger on him a little longer than needed. All she wanted was to protect him, even if he _was_ old enough to do it on his own, but she couldn't help it. It was a mother's job to love and protect her children at all times, and she wouldn't be able to live with herself if something ever happened to him. "I love you," she said as she passed by his bed.

"Love you, too," he muttered back, lacking the energy to even keep his eyes open. She stood in the doorway for a moment to look back at him before turning the lights off and shutting the door quietly behind her. Sighing to herself, she walked down the hallway to her room where Jack was already in bed watching TV with the volume down low.

"How's our boy?" He asked her as she crossed the threshold of their room.

"Miserable." She responded before sitting down on the edge of the bed on Jack's side. Questioning her own decisions, she placed her head in her hands and let out a breath. "Are we doing the right thing?" She asked out loud almost subconsciously, referring to what they were putting Danny through.

"Of course," Jack said in reassurance, placing a hand on her shoulder. "The world isn't ready for his kind yet. They barely accept ghosts as it is. If we want him to have a normal life, this is what we have to do." Maddie placed her own hand over his before giving him a light smile.

"Right," she patted his hand before she rose from the bed, "just let me get ready for bed." She crossed their room to get to the bathroom before closing the door behind her. Although they thought their conversation was private, Danny couldn't help but float invisibly outside their door, hearing every word that was said. The thing was, they weren't wrong about anything they commented on. People either hated ghosts or they ran away from them screaming. The government, on the other hand, would probably be the only ones that would want to get their hands on him, but only to dissect him or experiment on him. That thought alone was enough to make him physically shudder. Jazz always thought on the positive side, telling him people would accept him if he really tried, but that wasn't the way the world worked. His shoulders slumped in defeat as he floated back to his room, not knowing who or what to believe.

* * *

 **I am SO sorry I haven't updated literally anything for the past couple of months. My life has kind of been a shit-show but I'M BACK AND MEDICATED BABYYYY**

 **I'm still writing this story as I go, so I'll still be updating randomly, but HOPEFULLY you won't have to wait another 3 months for another chapter ^^'**

 **Chloee0x0: You know I can't resist lol**

 **Invader Johnny: Yeah, hopefully Sam can get to Danny and help him figure out what he wants**

 **Guest: Yeah, maybe with Sam's help they can figure everything out together**

 **Fan12: THEY ARE**

 **Tay1019411: Thanks so much!**

 **Purplerox: LMAO saaaaame**

 **MidnightWriter44678: Thanks a lot!**

 **sammansonrepilica: Thanks fam!**

 **sonicatemnaruto: Gracias!**


	10. Chapter 9

"All I do is read textbooks all day and you drag me to a book store?" Tucker questioned as him and Sam walked up to one of her favorite stores of all time, the Skulk and Lurk. Sam tried not to roll her eyes as she opened the entrance door for him.

"You also didn't say no," she commented, causing his shoulders to droop as he entered with Sam following behind. "You don't like to read?" She asked, walking straight into an aisle that was labeled science fiction.

"I do, but I don't have time. By the time I'm done doing homework and studying I'm too burnt to read out of fun."

"Yeah, I don't have to deal with that yet," she stated as she faced a shelf, thumbing through different books.

"Did you ever figure out what you want to do?" She shrugged dramatically and shoved her hands into her hoodie pockets, walking a little further down the aisle.

"I have no clue. My parents constantly bug me about it, you know, when they're actually home," she added, walking into the comic book section.

"Are they gone a lot?" Tucker wondered, assuming that's what she was insinuating.

"Seventy percent of the time. Their field is business, so they're constantly at work or taking business trips."

"Does it bother you?" She shrugged again as she picked up a comic from Marvel, flipping through the pages.

"It's the way it's always been. You get used to it." She responded, but Tucker felt that her answer wasn't entirely true. He had the feeling her parents not being around for her was where her feelings of loneliness originated, even if she didn't want to admit it. Before he could even speak on it, Sam changed the subject. "Does Danny like Marvel?" She asked, placing the comic back on the shelf.

"Yeah, of course. Do you?" She almost scoffed at the question.

"Hell yeah!"

"Who's your favorite superhero?"

"Deadpool for sure."

"That's Danny's, too."

"Oh, yeah?" She scanned the shelf for the newest issue before snatching it up. "Looks like he's getting a present."

"Why do you always get him stuff?" Tucker asked, following her aimlessly to the fiction section.

"It's not like he can do it himself," she said, making a good point he couldn't argue with.

"True. So, you really know this place inside and out, huh?" He asked, seeing she knew where everything in the store was.

"I would hope so considering I spent most of high school here. Reading is kind of one of the only things you can do alone," she said, keeping her stare on all the books in front of her. She stopped scanning the shelf when she saw a book about studies of the paranormal and reached out to pick it up. "Isn't this what Danny's parents do?" She asked Tucker as she turned to him.

"Yeah..." He answered a bit hesitantly, watching her tuck it underneath the comic she was getting for Danny. "You're going to get it? Why?"

"Maybe they sparked an interest in me," she said before walking out of the aisle and towards the front of the store where tables were set up. Pulling out a chair, she sat down with Tucker following her pursuit. She flipped the book open to the index and started to skim through all the different topics. "There's a _lot_ of sections dedicated to ghosts and spirits. This should be interesting."

"Are you sure you want to get that?" Tucker asked. He knew Sam was a smart girl; if she started to read this, she would be able to put two and two together and make all the connections between ghosts and Danny.

"Is there a reason I shouldn't?" Sam questioned with an eyebrow raised. Tucker bit his lip, knowing he couldn't expose Danny. Although it was possible Danny would share his secret with her eventually, Tucker knew it wasn't his place to do so. "What's the matter? Is this book haunted?" She teased with a smirk on her face.

"There's only one way to find out," he responded, knowing he couldn't stop her. She snickered before shutting the book closed loudly and made her way up to the front counter.

The following day, Sam found herself back at Fenton Works for her usual work routine. Even though she was only there for about an hour, she couldn't help but feel exhausted. Last night when she was finished hanging out with Tucker she decided to start her book which only led to her being up until the wee hours of the morning. With that being said, she still got about five hours of sleep which definitely wasn't that bad. As she cleaned the coffee table in the living room, she didn't notice Danny floating down the stairs silently. He peered out into the living room to see her back was to him, so he continued to quietly float towards her and stopped about one foot behind her, carefully getting as close to her ear as possible without her detecting him.

"Boo," he almost whispered, causing her to jump and spin around only to see an amused smile on his face. His smile faded when she started whacking him in the arm repeatedly.

"Don't do that! I could have started swinging!" She exclaimed, causing Danny to hold his arms out in defense.

"You already are!" He shouted, putting an end to his assault.

"I didn't even hear you come down. Which, by the way, why are you down here? You could get in trouble." He only waved a hand in dismissal at her question.

"I convinced my parents to let me out while you're here. Just don't let them catch us talking or that privilege would most likely be revoked."

"And I could get fired, but no big deal," she said sarcastically. Now that she was done scolding him, she finally realized that he didn't look nearly as ill as the day before. "You look a lot better than the last time we talked."

"Yeah, I stopped treatment yesterday. It wasn't doing anything except making me feel like I was dying. I just couldn't take it anymore," he responded, walking over to the couch and plopping down. Sam crossed her arms and stood across from him.

"So... what does that mean for you?" She asked, causing him to raise his arms in a shrug.

"I wait for my parents to come up with another potential antidote. It could be a few months or even sooner than that. It varies."

"Well, at least you're feeling better," she said, scooping up the glass cleaner and dirty paper towels she was using previously to clean. She headed towards the kitchen to throw out her garbage and Danny stood up from the couch to follow her.

"Thanks. I've missed video games... and TV in general," he added as he entered the kitchen a few moments after her. As Sam passed by her backpack on the counter, it reminded her that she had brought something for him.

"Oh, I got you something," she told him as she zipped open her bag. She pulled the comic out and handed it to him, his face lighting up with excitement, and she found herself giggling unexpectedly. "I saw this at the book store and Tucker said you would like it."

"I've actually really wanted to catch up on comics! Thanks a lot, but you don't have to keep buying me things," he said, causing her to shrug.

"It's not like you can go out and do it yourself."

"Amazon," he pointed out with a crooked smile.

"Yeah, but it doesn't make up for your loss of freedom."

"Hmmm, true," he stated, rolling up the comic carefully and tucking it in the back pocket of his jeans. She smiled at the fact that he was happy with his gift and he found himself smiling back. "You know, speaking of freedom, do you want to go out Friday night?" She raised an eyebrow at the question and cocked her head to the side.

"Go out as in leave the house?"

"Duh," he said jokingly, but she shook her head and chuckled nervously.

"I don't think that's a good idea," she commented, heading back into the living room with Danny following behind.

"Come on, I sneak out all the time. My parents leave around five and the earliest they get back is ten. That's plenty of time to do whatever we want,"

"What if we get caught?"

"You usually leave here by six anyway. If they come home and see I'm not there, _I'm_ the one getting in trouble, not you." Sam sighed and crossed her arms, thinking he had a good point. Sure she was afraid of possibly getting fired for crossing boundaries, but it's not like Danny's parents would find out and she doubted Danny would ever rat her out to them. Besides, this was the perfect opportunity for them to get to know each other better. It was hard to do that here when they constantly had to sneak around. By the look on her face, Danny could tell that she was contemplating it.

"Is that a yes...?" He asked, hoping he was able to convince her.

"Yeah, yeah. You win this round," she said with a slight smile, pushing him lightly in a playful manner. He smiled at her response and mentally cheered to himself.

"Great! Don't worry, we'll have fun."

"I know we will."

"I'll let you get back to work. I'll text you later."

"Okay." The smile on his face stayed as he left the kitchen and headed upstairs, not wanting to wait the forty-eight hours to hang out with her. Unbeknownst to him, Sam was thinking the same thing. For the rest of the day, Danny didn't come down again, much to her disappointment, but she was going to see him soon anyway. By the time she got home, it wasn't even seven o'clock yet, so she went upstairs to her room to change into something more comfortable, such as sweats and a large shirt. After tugging the articles of clothing on, she decided to head to Ida's room to see her. She left her bedroom and got into the elevator, stepping off at the third floor of the house. The door to her bedroom was open a crack, so Sam knocked lightly before entering. Ida was in bed, but awake, watching a show on her flatscreen that Sam didn't really care for.

"You're still awake?" Sam asked, causing Ida to scoff.

"It's only seven. I'm not _that_ old," she said, making Sam laugh. Ida lowered the volume of the TV as Sam walked over and sat cross-legged at the foot of her bed. "What's going on with you, girlie?"

"Not much. I just got home from work."

"Are you enjoying your time over there?"

"I don't think anyone enjoys working but it can definitely be worse."

"Right, how's it going with Danny?" She asked, wiggling her eyebrows in a rather flirtatious way.

"Why do you have to say it like that?" Sam wondered, resisting the urge to laugh.

"It's just a question, dear. Making any progress?"

"Yeah, actually. We're going out Friday night," Ida raised an eyebrow in a concerning way.

"Isn't he not allowed to leave the house?"

"Yeah, but he says he sneaks out all the time and his parents won't be home that night anyway," she answered, waving a hand in dismissal.

"So he's risking getting in trouble for you. Has it occurred to you that maybe he likes you?" Sam furred her eyebrows together and shook her head.

"No way. We're just friendly is all."

"Then why are you going on a date?"

"It's not a date! We're just hanging out,"

"Mhmmm," Ida hummed, causing Sam to scoff.

"Don't 'mhmmm' me! You're talking nonsense, old lady," Sam teased jokingly, making Ida laugh.

"If you say so," she responded, turning the volume on the TV back up, signaling that she was done with the conversation. Sam only squinted her eyes at her and shook her head.

"You give me headaches sometimes. I'll be in my room," she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and lightly stepped onto the carpet. "Goodnight, Grandma," she called over her shoulder.

"Goodnight, deary." She made her way down to her room, shutting the door behind her and leaning against it with her back. Ida had to have been teasing her, right? There was no way Danny liked her, and she didn't like Danny either... but then why was she suddenly nervous when thinking about Friday? Hoping it was just regular nerves, she swiped a hand down her face, yet her conversation with Ida kept replaying in her mind.

Headaches for sure.

* * *

 **Guys, I did a mad dash to finish this chapter just to update on Dannyversary XD I hope you had a good one! I'll see you guys next chapter :D**

 **Invader Johnny: Yesss, and this is now an even bigger step. Risking it all on this one lol**

 **Guest: I'm so happy you enjoy this so much! Thank you!**

 **lenasmith.106: Thank you! :D**

 **AlecGateway: I appreciate that! :)**

 **jensen6: Aww thanks!**

 **Guest: I'm glad you think so!**

 **Milo21: Thank you! I'll certainly try! lol**

 **MidnightWriter44678: Aww I appreciate your concern :) and thank you!**

 **Dotimus: That makes me feel really good. Thank you!**


	11. Chapter 10

Waking up in the morning on Friday was less of an annoyance than usual for Sam since she actually had something to look forward to later. After showering she opted for black jeans and a light sweater, also black of course. She slipped on her combat boots, one of the few things she kept from her goth days. Although back in high school she was into the goth scene, now that she was older she had toned it down a bit. She still refused to wear any bright colors, but she discontinued her dark makeup and got rid of most of her old, over the top, gothic clothes. She still wanted to look dark and edgy, but without looking like a vampire. Leaving the bathroom, she made her way down to the kitchen where Ida was at the table eating and watching television. She spared Sam a glance before shooting her a flirtatious look.

"You look nice. Friday already?" She asked, causing Sam to roll her eyes.

"Stop it," she told her, walking over to the fridge and taking out the orange juice, "and just because I'm wearing a sweater doesn't mean I'm trying to look nice."

"It's better than what you usually wear," Ida stated, causing Sam's jaw to drop slightly at the sudden jab.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked amusingly, pouring herself a glass of juice before placing the carton back in the fridge.

"You usually look like a homeless person who also happens to be a fan of Marilyn Manson," Ida responded, making Sam practically choke on her juice.

"That's a bit dramatic, don't you think?" She said, causing Ida to laugh.

"I'm just joking, deary. No matter what you wear, you look beautiful."

"I know," she said cockily, but also in a joking manner. Finishing her cup, she placed it inside the dishwasher for it to be cleaned. As she turned around, Ida spoke up again.

"You know, your parents are coming home tomorrow. You should spend some time with them." Sam only rolled her eyes.

"Why, so they can nag me about the future that I know nothing about? Not exactly my idea of a good time."

"In their own way, they really are trying, though. They just want to make sure you'll be okay without them."

"I know," Sam paused to let out an exasperated sigh. "I love them and all, but we're completely different people. It's hard to relate to them when we want entirely different things."

"They're trying for you. Just do the same for them," Ida said, and the sentimental look on her face made Sam sigh in defeat.

"Yeah, yeah. I will." Ida smiled and rolled over to Sam to pat her hand.

"I'm glad. You'll make them happy." _I feel like I never make them happy_ , Sam thought to herself, but she didn't want to say it out loud to Ida. The last thing she wanted was for her to feel bad about the way she and her parents' relationship made her feel, so she just smiled and grabbed her backpack.

"I'm going to head to work now. I'll see you tomorrow." She reached down to give her a hug before she headed for the door.

"Oh, have fun on your date!" Ida yelled after her.

"Not a date!" Sam shouted back over her shoulder before closing the front door. When Sam arrived at Fenton Works, it was just the same thing, different day. She cleaned until both Maddie and Jack left, and to her disappointment, Danny didn't come down after they did. It wasn't until six o'clock when she was just finishing up that she heard footsteps on the stairs, and looked up hopefully to see Danny, dressed in a black long-sleeved shirt and blue jeans. He smiled as he approached her and she found herself smiling back.

"I just finished if that's what you're wondering," she told him as she walked into the kitchen where her bag was sitting on the counter.

"I'm ready whenever you are. I was thinking we could go down to the pier. They're having a carnival down there if you're interested," Danny said. The pier was a nice place to go even without a carnival there. There were little shops and restaurants and docs for people to keep their boats at, not to mention a small beach.

"Sounds like a plan to me." She reached into her bag to pull out her keys but paused to turn around and face Danny. "Just curious; do you have a license?"

"Don't tell my parents, not that you would, but," he reached into his back pocket to fish for his wallet, pulling it out and opening it to reveal his driver's license, "Jazz taught me how to drive then took me to the test without telling our parents. I used to drive with her a lot," he answered, and Sam held up her keys.

"Want to drive?" She asked with a slight smile, and Danny raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"You trust _me_ to drive your car?" He questioned, but Sam only shrugged.

"Only if you trust yourself. It's a Hyundai Accent. Think you can handle it?" He only held out his hand with a smirk on his face, and Sam dropped the keys into his palm. "Let's get to it then." He followed her out to the car where he got into the driver's seat, and even though it felt weird being in the passenger seat of her car, Sam knew she could trust Danny. Sam buckled her seatbelt as they took off, and she couldn't help but be curious at a number of things.

"When did you get your license?" She asked him, but he kept his eyes on the road.

"When I was seventeen."

"When's the last time you drove?"

"Over the summer when Jazz was back from school."

"You probably miss her, huh?"

"Eh," he responded, causing Sam to raise an eyebrow in amusement. Danny cracked a smile and spared her a quick glance before directing his attention back onto the road. "Of course I do. She can annoy the shit out of me sometimes, but I couldn't ask for a better sister. We have that typical sibling relationship, you know?"

"Not really. I'm an only child," Sam answered, leaning the chair back and putting her hands behind her head.

"Did you ever want a sibling?" Danny asked out of curiosity.

"I mean, I would think about it at times growing up, but in the end, it's better off that my parents didn't. They shouldn't have even had me considering what their job is and how little they're home."

"But isn't that lonely?" She only shrugged, glancing out her window for a moment before turning to look at Danny.

"You learn to be lonely." The tiny wave of sympathy that came over Danny didn't surprise him, but he could also relate to her. Being isolated most of the time wasn't so pleasant either, but at least he had his parents and Jazz; Sam had almost no one.

"Don't you have your grandma?" He asked, glancing over just in time to see her nod.

"Yeah, she moved in with us when I was in high school. She's the main reason I didn't lose my sanity," she added with a small chuckle, and Danny nodded in empathy.

"Same with Tucker. He was always there for me, but after the accident, it's like he went into maximum overdrive."

"Accident?" Sam questioned, and Danny's light smile dropped, not realizing what slipped out until after he said it. He was obviously aware Sam knew there was something wrong with him, but he didn't mean to say what caused it, even if 'accident' was still vague. Sam was incredibly smart and he knew she would be able to figure it out with enough information, but he wasn't sure if she was trustworthy to know yet.

"Yeah... he was there when it happened," he said, but Sam noticed the hesitation in his voice. Assuming he didn't want to reveal too much, she didn't continue on the subject.

"Tucker's a really good friend. You're lucky to have had each other all these years," she told him, and he nodded in response.

"Definitely." They pulled into one of the parking lots for the pier which was a bit crowded, but it was expected on a Friday night, especially since the carnival was in town. They decided to start with that first, challenging each other to different rides to see who would choke first, but they both persisted and had a great time without feeling sick in the end. After they were done with all the rides they wanted to go on, they decided to play some games. As they passed different booths, a basketball one caught Danny's eye. There was only one single hoop, but it was very high up and farther away than it should be to make it harder to win.

"You want to do that one?" Sam asked, noticing his eyes lingering on it.

"I mean, I'm not going to be able to do it, but I'll give it a try," he answered, fishing out a five dollar bill to pay the employee. Grabbing a basketball, he paused to examine the distance and height before shooting. He let out an exasperated sigh as he watched it hit the rim and bounce off. "So close. Want to try?" He asked, causing Sam to shrug.

"Yeah, I'll give it a shot." She handed the same employee five dollars before he handed her a ball, which she noted was inflated quite badly. She eyed the hoop before she shot it, getting it in on the first try. Danny's jaw dropped as he turned to look at her, and she only shrugged dramatically.

"Why are you better than me at almost everything?" He asked, half serious but also curious.

"Definitely not everything," she commented, and the employee's voice distracted her from their conversation.

"You can pick anything from the top row," the teenager told her, so she looked at Danny and nodded towards the rewards.

"What do you want?" She asked, causing him to scoff.

"You're getting _me_ something now? Shouldn't it be the other way around?"

"Do you want something or not?" She questioned, rolling her eyes amusingly. He looked up to examine the stuffed animals before pointing to a blue shark.

"That one." Sam held out her hands as the teenager handed her a decent sized shark before she gave it to Danny.

"Thanks a lot," he said to him as they both started to walk away.

"So what are you going to name him?" Sam asked, watching as Danny tucked it under his arm.

"Sharky," he responded, causing Sam to scoff.

"Real creative," she stated sarcastically, causing Danny to laugh.

"It's fitting," he defended, causing Sam to shake her head as she chuckled. "Hey, there's a comic book store around here. Want to check it out?"

"I'm down," she agreed, walking side by side together as they left the carnival. The store was right by one of the docs which wasn't too far away from where they already were. "Just curious; do you go to college? You know, online?" She asked, and Danny let out a small laugh.

"You seem to be curious about a lot."

"Probably because I don't know much about you," she said dryly in response.

"Fair enough. No, I don't. My parents want me to have a real college experience, so we've been postponing it until I get back to normal, but if that doesn't happen by next year, then I'll be doing online classes."

"What do you want to do?"

"Science. Astronomy specifically. I always found stars, planets, and space in general really fascinating."

"It's good to pursue something you'll enjoy doing," she said as they approached the comic book store. Danny took the lead to open the entrance door for her, using his left hand to hold it open and keeping his shark tucked under his right arm. "Me, on the other hand-" she was interrupted when Danny pulled her out of the store as soon as she crossed the threshold. She looked up at him with a confused look and he had an apologetic look on his face. Shaking his head, he started to walk toward the docs with Sam following by his side.

"I'm sorry. I can't go in there. I didn't know she works there," he said vaguely, causing Sam to look back briefly.

"Who?" After a brief silence, he gave her an answer.

"Valerie Grey."

"Valerie? I remember her from Casper. Why don't you want to see her?" He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand before they stopped at the edge of an empty boat dock.

"It's kind of a long story," he answered. Sam only sat down with her legs dangling off the edge and patted the empty space next to her. Danny let out a small chuckle before joining her, placing his carnival prize next to him. "After I got pulled out of high school freshman year, it took Valerie two years to even notice. She messaged me out of the blue one day and chatted me up. I was really excited because I kind of always had a crush on her and it turned out she liked me too. We started dating and I would sneak out to see her, but after six months she broke up with me. She couldn't trust me especially since I wouldn't tell her what was wrong with me in the first place. I guess she just got tired of the secrets," he finished, turning his head so he could see her.

"So you still aren't over her?" She guessed, assuming that's why he wouldn't go in the store. He just scoffed and shook his head as he stared off into the already setting sun.

"No, I'm definitely over her. I mean, that was three years ago. I just don't want her to see me out, especially with you. I'm sure she'll message me with a bunch of questions and I just don't want to deal with it," he answered with a roll of his eyes. "It didn't really end well. She was pretty angry with me meanwhile I was just heartbroken."

"I think I can one-up you," she said, causing him to turn his head to look at her. "My first and only boyfriend was a liar. He lied about where he was from, who he was, even his name. I didn't find out until eight months later; he made me feel like a fool for trusting him." She sighed and laid back onto the deck so she was staring up at the sky. Instead of judging her or commenting, Danny did the same thing but turned his head so he could still see her. "After that, I kind of swore off relationships. I figured doing something casual with guys was a lot easier than opening up and getting your heart broken," she finished, and Danny's heart ached for her, knowing the feeling.

"All guys aren't like that, you know," he finally spoke up, causing her to look at him.

"I know. I kind of just don't trust myself when it comes to relationships. I already fucked up once, so what's stopping me from doing it again?"

"That's the thing about relationships. You learn what you want and you learn what you don't want. You learn from your mistakes so you don't make the same ones with the right person." She only nodded, looking back up at the sky as the sun nearly disappeared.

"You're definitely not wrong," she said, her stare lingering at what was above her as Danny's stare lingered on her.

"You deserve better than that," he told her, but despite the compliment, she only laughed.

"How can you say that when you don't know much about me?"

"I know enough to speculate my opinion, and I know for a fact that you do. You care about others and their feelings and the first sign was you coming up to my door and wanting to befriend me so I didn't feel lonely. Everything you've done so far has only proven my suspicions," he finished, causing her to crack a smile. He was pretty much on the money and she was surprised at how well he was able to read people even after being secluded for so long.

"You got me there," she said as she sat back up with Danny doing the same.

"Now how about it's my turn to get you a prize? Maybe another shark so we can match," he told her with a crooked smile, one that she returned.

"Agreed. Let's go." The rest of the night consisted of more carnival rides and games where Danny managed to win and give her the same shark, only purple considering it was her favorite color. Afterward, they journeyed to a couple of different shops that piqued their interest before heading back to the house, not wanting to cut it too close with the time. Sam parked in front of the curb and they were both pleased to see the Fenton RV was still nowhere in sight, signaling they were home free.

"This is your stop," she stated, looking at him as he smiled at her.

"Yeah, I guess so. I had a lot of fun tonight. We should do this more often," he suggested, causing Sam to nod.

"Yeah, me too. I really like hanging out with you," she told him, and he pointed at her shark that was in the backseat.

"If you ever miss me just let that be a reminder of me," he added jokingly, causing her to smirk.

"Or I could just call you," she quipped, making him shrug.

"You got me there. See you Monday?"

"You bet."

"Cool," he opened the door and stepped halfway out before he paused and took a second to look back at her. "I don't think I told you this, but I'm really glad you ever knocked on my door in the first place," he told her. She was caught a little off guard and she could feel her heart flutter in her chest a bit, but she ended up giving him a warm smile.

"Me too," she said, and he mirrored her grin before finally stepping out of the car.

"Goodnight," he wished her, closing the door softly right afterward. She only pulled away from the house after she saw him safely enter, making sure he got in okay. The ride home consisted of their time together replaying in her head, and the only thing she could think was how happy she was to have agreed to a night out with him. They had a lot of interests in common and she really liked the kind of person Danny was, and judging by his statements tonight, he must have felt the same, too. Once she got home, she decided to talk to Ida in the morning instead of tonight and headed straight to bed. Facing the window so she could see the moon illuminate the room, she wondered just how many nights Danny would continue to be on her mind.

* * *

 **Sorry for the long wait, but I basically just finished this chapter ^^'**

 **I love you guys so much and thanks for all the support on this story :D**

 **Invader Johnny: Yo Ida is honestly the best lol I feel like she just gets Sam in a lot of ways her parents don't**

 **Chloee0x0: I'm glad :D**

 **MidnightWriter44678: Lol I hope it lived up to your expectations**

 **Guest: Thanks dude!**

 **Fan12: I hope you liked it!**

 **KorrieChan: Thanks so much!  
**

 **Mallory: LOL for sure**

 **guineagirl: I appreciate that so much!**


	12. Chapter 11

_Spirits tend to have their own aura which usually reflects the color of their ectoplasm. As we learned in previous chapters, ectoplasm is the main source of power for a spirit. Just like humans need blood, spirits need ectoplasm to survive. Their aura depends on their own individuality, but the most common color is green._

A sudden memory flashed through Sam's mind before she could even finish reading the intro of the chapter she was on. The first few times she had ever been upstairs at Fenton Works, she noticed a green light coming from under Danny's door multiple times. She assumed it was always coming from something inside of his room, but she's been in there before and never noticed anything that could come close to green. She was wondering if she was crazy for making a comparison that seemed impossible, but ghosts, in general, seemed impossible yet here they were. She was lost deep in her thoughts until a knock on her door distracted her from them and she closed her book shut.

"It's just me," she heard Ida say from behind the door.

"It's open," she called loudly, falling backward onto her bed as Ida entered the threshold of her room.

"Your parents are home. Just letting you know," Ida told her, and Sam fought hard to keep the whine in her throat from escaping her mouth.

"Heard on that," she responded but made no effort to get out of her bed.

"Sam..." Ida started to say, but it came out as more of a groan.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," she sighed out as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed before stepping out of it.

"Ask about anything job related," Ida continued, but Sam only scoffed in amusement.

"I know how to talk to my parents, Grandma. I just tend to avoid it," she stated as they left her room and made their way down the hallway.

"That's really not good."

"Yeah, I know. I would change it if I could, but I can't. We just don't see eye to eye. It doesn't mean I _always_ have an awful time with them. There are days where I have a blast with them but then there are days where I'd rather get hit by a bus than hear their minimalistic and stereotypical views," Sam added with a roll of her eyes as they entered the elevator. She pressed the button labeled "1" to get to the first floor as Ida shook her head.

"I'm sorry it's hard to relate to them, sweetie," Ida told her, a sincere look on her face.

"It's okay. At least I have you, right?" Sam said with a smile, one that Ida returned.

"Always." The elevator doors opened and they both exited out and turned into the living room where Pam and Jeremy were. They still had their suitcases with them, so Sam guessed that they had just stepped into the house.

"Hey," Sam greeted, and Pam immediately walked over to her to give her a hug.

"Hi, Samantha! Missed you," she said as she pulled away.

"Me too," Sam said as Jeremy pulled her into a hug as well. "How'd the trip go?"

"Oh, you know. Same old thing every time," Jeremy said as he picked up both his and Pam's suitcases and headed toward the stairs to put everything back in their room.

"Anything new happen while we were gone?" Pam asked. _A lot, actually,_ Sam thought to herself, but she just shook her head.

"Nope. Same old shit here, too," she stated as she crossed her arms. Pam shot her a disapproving look and Sam raised an eyebrow.

"I don't like you cursing."

"I take it back then," Sam said, holding her hands up in defense while resisting the urge to roll her eyes. She did, however, direct her attention toward Ida with a look, as if she was saying, "you see what I mean?" Just then, Jeremy reappeared at the bottom of the stairs, walking into the living room to join the rest of his family.

"I threw our clothes in the hamper. The housekeeper can do the laundry next time she comes," he said, waving off the chore.

"Do you want to come to lunch with us, Sam?" Pam asked her, and Sam looked over at Ida briefly.

"Is Grandma coming?"

"I'll let you and your parents spend some together. It's been a while," Ida spoke up before leaving the room, making Sam feel abandoned, even if she knew Ida was trying to do the right thing.

"I'm ready whenever you are," Sam told Pam, but a look appeared on her mother's face as if she was disgusted with something.

"Is that what you're wearing?" She asked Sam, examining the black, oversized shirt and grey leggings that she was sporting. Sam finally let her eyes roll out of her head; this was going to be the longest lunch of her life.

* * *

Tucker's jeep slowly approached Fenton Works, carefully parking along the curb to prevent scratching his tire on it. As soon as he turned off his car, he walked up to the front door and let himself in, knowing Jack and Maddie would be in the lab anyway. Making his way up the stairs, he knocked on Danny's door before entering, seeing him laying on his bed watching TV, using his blue shark as a pillow.

"Really?" Tucker asked him with an almost disappointing look.

"What? It's comfortable," Danny defended, sitting up and placing the shark in his lap to lean on it.

"Did you get that at the carnival?" Tucker assumed, walking a few steps over to sit down in Danny's computer chair.

"Yeah. Sam got it for me. I also got her a purple one."

"So you guys had a good time?"

"We had a _great_ time. It really helped us get to know each other more." Tucker only nodded as he slid his backpack off and fished out his laptop. Danny reminisced at his and Sam's time together, but there was something that they had talked about together that was on his mind that he was curious about. "Do you remember her last boyfriend?" He asked Tucker, assuming he saw them in the hallways of their high school at least a few times. Tucker let out a breath and started to rub his eyes as if it would help him remember.

"Yeah, some foreign kid who was a year older than us. Greg? Gregory? Gregor! That was his name," Tucker said, opening his laptop and turning it on. "He seemed to be right up her alley. His style was almost the same as hers and she seemed to be really happy with him, but right before he graduated I stopped seeing them together so I just assumed they broke up." Tucker said casually with a shrug, waiting rather impatiently to see the home screen of his laptop. "Why are you asking?"

"She talked about it briefly last night but was vague with it. I was just curious."

"It's good that you guys are getting personal. It'll help you decide whether or not you want to tell her your secret, you know, if she doesn't find out herself first," Tucker added, causing Danny to raise an eyebrow.

"Why would she?"

"Because of the book."

"What book?"

"She didn't tell you?" Tucker asked, and Danny only shook his head in response. "She bought a book the other day about the paranormal; ghosts included, and we both know how smart she is. It's only a matter of time until she'll be able to see all the connections." Danny sighed and let himself fall into his bed, feeling like his plans were getting derailed all because of a book. He wanted this to all go slowly and at his own pace but this book would only speed up the process, giving Sam all the information to figure everything out. It wasn't even a matter of deciding to tell her or not anymore, it was a matter of making sure he could trust her to keep it to herself. He already thought she was a great person and enjoyed spending time with her a lot, so he hoped she felt the same with him and they could stay friends for a long time, maybe even forever.

"Then I guess I have to speed this friendship up," Danny spoke up, causing Tucker to shoot him a questionable look.

"How are you going to do that?" He asked as Danny sat back up.

"Well, the more you hang out with someone the stronger the friendship gets, right?"

"Yeah, but how are you going to hang out with her besides Fridays?" Tucker questioned, but Danny didn't give a verbal answer. He just gave Tucker a knowing look before his eyes turned green.

* * *

"So tell me about last night," Ida said to Sam, the both of them in the safe haven of Ida's room. Sam sat cross-legged at the foot of the bed, much like she always did, while Ida was on the other end. Her parents had finally gone to bed and they had the freedom to talk about everything Ida had missed.

"It was really good. We went to the pier where they were having a carnival, so we did that and just walked around and talked the whole night," Sam told her. "He's a really good guy. At least _his_ parents knew what they were doing," she added, causing Ida to raise an eyebrow.

"Are you insisting your parents did a bad job with you?" She asked to which Sam only shrugged, causing Ida to scoff and shake her head. "You may have rebel tendencies, but you have a good heart and honest morals. That's what makes a good person." Sam only smiled at her, feeling as if Ida always knew what to say to make her feel better. "Go on. I want to hear more. You guys get along?"

"Yeah, we're into the same things and have a lot in common."

"Is he cute?" Ida asked, causing Sam to raise an eyebrow.

"Why does that matter?"

"You didn't answer the question."

"Well, you didn't answer mine."

"I asked first so you answer first." Sam sighed, giving in just to end the back and forth bickering.

"I mean, yeah, but that doesn't matter because we're just friends."

"What if you end up liking him?"

"It wouldn't work out anyway, so there's no point in even trying... _if_ I liked him."

"Sam," Ida sighed out, reaching out her hand to pat Sam's, "you can't let your past relationship ruin your future ones. Not everyone is going to be like that jerk."

"I'm not scared of relationships. I'm not scared of anything," she added, crossing her arms over her chest sternly. "I just don't want my time wasted, that's all." Ida could have pushed on, but she didn't want Sam to shut down and leave, much like she did when a subject was brought up that she was displeased with, so she moved on.

"Okay. I'm just glad you have both him and Tucker. They seem to lift your mood," she said, causing Sam to nod.

"Me too." As if on cue, her phone started to go off and she took it out of her pocket to see that she was receiving a video chat.

"Is that him?" Ida asked, wiggling her eyebrows slightly to tease her.

"Oh, shush," Sam said before leaving the room to answer it. Of course, Ida was right and it was, in fact, Danny, but she wasn't in the mood to hear it from her. It looked like he was at his computer desk, most likely playing online like he usually was.

"What's up?" Sam asked, deciding to take the stairs instead of the elevator.

"Not much. What's going on with you?" He replied, causing her to shrug as she got to her room.

"Literally nothing. I'm just bored as usual," she answered, sitting down on her bed.

"Does that mean I can come over?" He asked, half joking but also serious.

"What about your parents?"

"Sleeping. Is that a yes?"

"Um, are you for real?" She asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah. I'm bored, you're bored; we can be bored together." It wasn't that Sam didn't want him to come, she was just worried about the way he would react to her home. Once he approached her house, it would be obvious that her family was wealthy. On the other hand, there really was no other way for her to spend time with him besides sneaking around at his house, which left little to be desired. She justified it by thinking to herself that he would find out eventually anyway, so with a heavy heart, she agreed. "Okay, you win," she finally said, "am I getting you?"

"I could just walk if you're not too far. Where do you live?"

"Here, I'll send you my address," she told him, swiftly doing so, "are you sure you don't want me to get you?"

"My phone is telling me it's just a couple of minutes on foot. I think I'll be okay," he said with a chuckle. "I'll leave now."

"Okay. Just don't freak out when you get here," she warned him, making him raise an eyebrow.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You'll find out."

"Cryptic. I'll see you in a few," and without another word, he logged off, and Sam sighed and fell onto her bed face first. She didn't like revealing her financial status to anyone, but Danny was becoming one of her good friends and it was only a matter of time before she revealed it to him anyway. It was only about ten minutes later when she suddenly heard a knock at her window, causing her to jump from her spot on her bed. She was confused, yet curious at what that could possibly be, so she slowly and cautiously walked over to her window and pulled back the curtain a little to see who the culprit was, only to see Danny. She pulled the curtain back all the way and opened her window.

"How did you get up here?" She asked him, and he gave her a nervous smile. In reality, he just floated up to her window, but he wasn't about to admit that.

"I'm on your terrace," he responded.

"You know I have a front door, right?"

"I didn't want to risk anyone seeing me."

"Everyone's sleeping, doofus! Now get in here," she said jokingly before stepping aside so Danny could enter. He only snickered before crossing the threshold between the window and her room. Sam closed the window afterward as Danny looked around, surprised at how large her room was, especially compared to his.

"Wow, your room is like, five times the size of mine," he told her as she sat down in her computer chair. "And your house isn't even a house. It's a mansion!"

"And I would appreciate it if you didn't tell Tucker. As far as he knows, I'm upper class. He has _no_ idea that I'm part of the one percent."

"Is that why he's never been to your house?" Danny asked her, causing her to nod. "Why hide it if he's already your friend?"

"I don't know. I feel like the mood changes. I just don't want to be treated any differently than before." Her statement unexpectedly hit him in a personal place. Even though their situations were different, he thought the same thing as her after the accident. He forced himself out of his own thoughts when he realized he was probably silent for a lot longer than he intended, so he finally nodded.

"I get it," he told her, and Sam couldn't help but notice the sadness in his eyes as she looked into them. After a short moment, he broke their stare by turning around to look at all the different posters on her walls, stopping when he saw one he recognized. "You like Dumpty Humpty?" He asked, thumbing over in the direction of its spot on the wall.

"I've been a fan since the beginning," she stated matter of factly.

"Me too. I heard their first album and was hooked." He stopped in his tracks when he noticed how many game systems she had in the corner of her room. It looked like she had almost every system imaginable, even Atari and the Sega Genesis. "Whoa! Do these still work?" He asked as he walked over to them.

"Yeah. I take good care of everything," she told him, watching as he crouched down and picked up an original GameCube to look at it further. "If you think that's cool, you should see the basement," she said as she rose from her seat, causing Danny to do the same. He followed her into the hallway where she stopped in front of the elevator, doors opening almost as soon as she pressed the down button. They stepped inside together, and Sam looked up at Danny as the doors closed before them. He was looking around as if he was in awe, and he probably was, and Sam couldn't help but chuckle.

"What's with the face?" She asked, earning an incredulous look from him.

"You have an _elevator_ in your house." He stated rather bluntly, causing her to laugh.

"It wasn't always here. We started construction on it when my parents decided they wanted Grandma to live here with us." The elevator came to a smooth stop and dinged, the doors opening up to reveal the last level of the house, and Danny's jaw dropped immediately. There was a movie screen complete with comfy recliners, a popcorn and soda machine, foosball, an air hockey table, pinball machines, and arcade games. It wasn't even a basement, it was basically a small Dave and Busters.

"This is where I spent basically my entire life," Sam told him, and his mouth closed, knowing she was down here alone for too many years.

"It definitely seems like a great place to be," he said, following her out of the elevator. She stopped in the middle of the basement, holding her arms out wide.

"The world is your oyster. What do you want to do first?" She asked him, and he had to take a moment to look around before running over to a game he was rather familiar with.

"You have Time Crisis five?" He asked excitingly, grabbing one of the guns with his right hand.

"Of course. It's a classic," she replied, walking up next to him and grabbing the only other gun, "I bet the both of us working together would be unstoppable," she continued, causing him to nod in agreement.

"You're probably right, but I think we should test that theory," he suggested with a sly smile, one Sam returned, and without another word, she turned the game on.

The rest of the night consisted of the two of them hopping from game to game, either working together or challenging each other to see who would come out on top. It was intriguing to Danny to see Sam this way; it's not like she was acting differently than her normal self, it was just the light in her eyes that he noticed. It made him think that she really did enjoy company more than she claimed she did. She had told him before that being alone was something that she was used to, but after tonight, he begged to differ.

They had just finished playing their second round of air hockey when Sam yawned, feeling the sleep that she was missing finally catching up to her. She pulled out her phone to check the time and was surprised to see it was already two in the morning.

"Damn, time flies when you're having fun," she said, causing Danny to check the time as well.

"Wow, I didn't even realize it was that late. I should really head home," he told her.

"Use the front door this time," she teased, leading him into the elevator. He scoffed at her response, but nevertheless, smiled.

"That would definitely be a lot easier."

"Do you want me to drive you home?" She asked, but he shook his head.

"Don't worry about it. It's only a few minutes away."

"It's also two in the morning. It could be dangerous to walk alone," she pointed out as the elevator doors opened to reveal the living room.

"Are you trying to say I'm weak?" He joked, trailing behind her as she walked over to the front door.

"With those muscles? Doubt it." It was as if the words escaped from her mouth before she even knew what she was saying. She wasn't trying to come off as flirty at all, but her mind seemed to disagree. She wanted to smack herself in the head for it, but Danny seemed to find it amusing for he smirked at her.

"Are you looking at my muscles?"

"You're wearing a tank top, Danny. They're kind of there," she said with a roll of her eyes, hoping it was a good enough cover.

"Mhmm, sure," he said sarcastically, causing Sam to open the door.

"Alright, that's it. Get out of my house," she said jokingly, causing him to chuckle.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow."

"Okay. See you." She closed the door after he left and rested her forehead on it, trying not to repeatedly hit her head into it for being such an idiot.

"Smooth," she heard from behind her, causing her to jump and turn around. Ida was by the elevator, eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich as she watched Sam make a fool out of herself.

"What are you doing up?" Sam asked.

"I should be asking you the same question but obviously sneaking around is the answer." Sam opened her mouth to explain herself but Ida held up a hand to stop her. "I won't tell your parents. I'm just happy you're making friends... and admiring their muscles," she added with a snicker before taking a bite of her sandwich.

"Oh, my god. Go to sleep, old lady," Sam joked as she started to climb the stairs.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

* * *

 **And, once again, I am sooooooo sorry for the slow updates. This is still a work in progress so please bear with me through my writer's block ^^'**

 **As always, thank you guys so much for all the support. It's what really keeps me going :3**

 **MidnightWriter44678: Omg thank you so much T.T**

 **InvaderJohnny: Aww you may be on to something XD**

 **Guest: Ida always knows what's up lol Her and Sam are basically the same**

 **Sam Manson Repilica: Thank you so much T.T I've definitely felt inspired lately since I've been feeling normal again. And YES. THANK YOU. This story is like, half slow burn because it's just way more realistic than automatic love :3**

 **Milo21: Wow, I'm really glad to hear that. I'm more than happy I can help :)**

 **Fan12: Right XD**

 **Guest: Thank you :)**

 **aSinglePancake: Thank you. I'm also thoroughly enjoying your username :D**


	13. Chapter 12

"Danny, can you stop being gross for five seconds?" Jazz's nagging comment made Danny freeze for a split second, his forkful of salad just inches away from his lips.

"I'm literally just eating," he stated before thrusting his food into his mouth.

"Yeah, but you eat like a Neanderthal," she said, causing him to roll his eyes.

"Thanks. Can we get back on track now?"

"Right. I was just saying I'm already halfway done with this semester. I'll be back before you know it; just a few days before Christmas." He rolled his eyes at the mentioned holiday, resisting the urge to scoff.

"Just in time for the worst holiday of the year."

"It won't be so bad when I'm there with you. We'll make it fun," Jazz told him with a smile, always trying to see the positive side of things, but Danny only shrugged.

"Yeah, maybe." They were interrupted by a knock on the door, and Maddie peaked her head in before coming inside. She was wearing a blue, causal dress with white heels and matching earrings, ready for a night out.

"Is that Jazz I hear?" Maddie asked as she approached the laptop.

"Yup. It's me," Jazz replied, "we were just talking about Christmas break."

"Oh, I can't wait until you get back! We hardly have time for our thoughtful conversations anymore," Maddie continued, and Jazz knew she was right. Her studies consumed her and it was hard to balance that with a social life, but she was trying her best. It had been a while since they had a conversation about what exactly was going on at the household, and as she looked from Danny to Maddie, she thought now was a good enough time as ever to talk to her mother about something that has been on her mind.

"Yeah, I actually want to talk to you about something. _Alone_ ," she stressed, causing Danny to stand up.

"I get it. I'm done anyway. I'll go downstairs to throw this out," he said as he grabbed his empty salad container and turned away. He already assumed it was about him if his presence was unwanted, and he wasn't sure how to feel or think. He decided he could always ask Jazz about it later and would hopefully get an honest answer out of her. Back in his room, Maddie took his place in his computer chair.

"Is everything okay?" She asked Jazz, causing her to nod.

"Yeah, I just wanted to ask you... how is Danny's treatment going?" Maddie sighed at the question Jazz asked frequently and sat back in the chair in a defeated manner.

"Everything we try either hasn't worked or has serious side effects Danny can't handle. I don't know how we haven't found a cure after all these years."

"Maybe you should just stop," Jazz told her, causing Maddie to look up at her and raise an eyebrow.

"Why would we do that? You know he can't have a normal life like this." Jazz only shook her head at the default answer Maddie always gave.

"You don't know that."

"The government would come after him as soon as they find out what he is. I am _not_ risking my only son's life. We almost lost him in the accident and I can't go through something like that again."

"Shouldn't Danny be the one to decide what he wants? He's an adult, Mom. He's not a little kid anymore." Maddie put her hands together, pressing them against her mouth as if trying to conceal the cries she was fighting. Jazz sympathized with her, knowing this was an emotional topic for both of them, but Jazz had to bring it up. It wasn't hard to tell that Danny wasn't very happy with this negative and isolated life he was living, and Jazz only wanted what was best for her little brother. "I love him, too, Mom. I don't want anything to happen to him either, but concealing and depriving him of the only world he's ever known is no way for him to live. All these treatments he's doing, the side effects just make him suffer. It's been _five years_ of this, Mom..." Maddie didn't speak for a couple of moments, not knowing what to do. She couldn't risk losing the only son she ever had, but she knew Danny couldn't live a life that was normal being isolated as well. Even though every ounce of her wanted to protect him, she cared about his happiness more. However, she didn't want to completely give up on the thought that Danny could still have a normal life again if they could just find the right concoction. She finally moved her hands from her mouth to speak, deciding to make one last ultimatum.

"Just let us try _one_ more time to find an antidote. Danny deserves at least one more chance to be normal. Your father and I won't give it to him unless we're certain it could work. If it doesn't, I guess that's the end of it," she agreed with a heavy heart. "But don't say anything to Danny about it. I want to be the one to tell him." Even though it wasn't exactly what Jazz wanted, she was still pleased that they could actually come to an agreement. This conversation was attempted so many times and never ended the way Jazz wanted it to, but she figured the guilt on Maddie's mind about the entire situation was finally getting too much for her.

"Good. So what else is new over there?"

Downstairs, Danny entered the kitchen to throw out his garbage before he went into the living room where Sam was cleaning. They'd been getting really close these past couple of weeks since Danny had been sneaking over to her house at night. Their friendship was thriving and they had gotten to the point where they were completely comfortable with one another. Sam had just finished vacuuming the couch and pillows and turned it off to put it aside upon seeing him.

"They're gossiping about me up there," Danny said to her, crossing his arms over his chest and looking annoyed.

"Who?"

"Mom and Jazz," he clarified, causing her to chuckle at him.

"That's what family does. It's normal."

"Yeah, but I think they might be talking about my... condition," he finished, using his words carefully.

"Is that bad?"

"I just feel if they have something to say about it, I should be able to hear, too." Sam wasn't quite sure what to say at first, but when she finally thought of something comforting to say, they both heard footsteps on the stairs, so Sam continued cleaning and Danny went into the kitchen to make it look like they weren't interacting. Maddie descended with Jack right behind her, who was also dressed nicely, and he walked in front of her to hold the front door open.

"We're going now, Danny. We'll be back later on," Maddie yelled over her shoulder to him before they left. As soon as they did, Sam joined Danny in the kitchen where he was sitting at the table waiting for her.

"Done. What do you want to do?" She asked him, considering they always found things to do together on Friday nights. She expected him to suggest movies, bowling, even a night in at her basement, but what he asked was something she never assumed he would.

"Do you want to see the lab?" He proposed, thumbing over to the said door that was currently closed. She was shocked that he would let her go down there knowing Danny's parents told her specifically not to. She assumed there were foreign chemicals, dangerous weapons, and according to Tucker, it's where the accident happened with Danny.

"Is it dangerous down there?" She questioned, but he only shrugged at her in response.

"As long as you don't turn anything on," he answered, getting up from his chair to walk over to the basement door. "Oh," he started, stopping to look behind him at Sam, "don't touch anything unless I say it's okay."

"Okay, you're making me really nervous," Sam admitted truthfully, but he only smiled and shook his head.

"It's just a safety precaution. I promise you'll be okay." His confidence made her feel a little better, and he opened the door to reveal a small staircase. As soon as they reached the bottom of it, Sam was able to take a full look at what used to be a normal basement. It looked like what she imagined a professional science lab would look like, only more high-tech. There were different sorts of weapons hanging on the walls, stations complete with glass beakers and vials, but what stood out the most was a yellow and black striped, large circle staring you right in the face on the back wall.

"Cool, right?" Danny asked, drawing her attention away from the portal.

"It really is, but to me, this is all just so... foreign," she finished, pausing to think of a fitting word.

"Yeah, it's really weird if you haven't grown up with it around you your whole life. It's no wonder my best subject was always science; I was practically conditioned to be ahead of the learning curve," he told her as he crossed his arms over his chest. Seeing she was taking his cautions seriously, he decided to let her look around wherever she wanted and she walked over to a table where two metal contraptions sat and pointed at them.

"What are those?" She asked, causing him to walk up to them as well.

"Wrist rays. They're basically tiny ectoguns but you wear them on your wrists," he explained, but Sam raised an eyebrow.

"What exactly is an ectogun?"

"The only kind of gun that can hurt a ghost," he responded as if that answered her question, but she supposed that was the simple answer. He took the lead and walked over to another table, picking up something that looked like it was made of mostly metal before walking back to her, holding up something that looked like a sort of cylinder container. "Meet the Fenton Thermos. This thing actually catches ghosts," he said, handing it to her so she could examine it more.

"This works?" She asked, flipping and turning it so she could see every angle of it.

"Yeah, my parents have used it a bunch of times."

"So the ghosts stay in here... then what?" Danny only turned around and pointed to the closed portal.

"They get sent back into the Ghost Zone," he stated matter of factly as if everyone were accustomed to the paranormal he grew up with.

"What do you mean Ghost Zone?" Sam questioned, hoping he could clarify. He then motioned for her to follow him and he walked over to a panel near the portal, placing his finger down on it to access the Ghost Zone. The portal opened, revealing a brilliant green glow, but as Sam stared into the green abyss in front of her, she realized she had noticed something like it before. It was the exact color and tint that she had seen outside of Danny's door more than a few times, but what did that mean? Tucker said the accident Danny was involved in happened down here, but what could this portal have possibly done to him?

"This is a portal to the Ghost Zone," Danny started to explain, dragging her out of her thoughts. "You know how we have our world? Ghosts have their own, too. This is it," he finished, motioning with his arms.

"Have you ever been inside?" She wondered, but he shook his head and closed the portal using the finger scanner once more.

"Not yet, at least. My parents haven't either. They're more focused on weapons than anything so they can be prepared for the unexpected when they explore it." Stepping away from the portal, Sam started to walk around again with Danny following behind, giving her the freedom to see whatever she wanted but also making sure she wouldn't get harmed in any way from anything. She stopped at a table with what looked like a vacuum cleaner on it, and she looked back at Danny for an explanation. "It's called the Fenton Weasel. It sucks up ghosts and traps them inside. It's not on, want to see it?" She answered by holding out her hands and Danny gripped the pole of the vacuum to pass it to her. "Just don't point it at me," he joked, and Sam raised an eyebrow.

"Can this hurt humans, too?" She asked, and he realized he had given away another hint unknowingly.

"The only thing you have to worry about is your hair getting caught. That shit hurts," he covered, which wasn't really a cover considering it was true.

"Why would I point this thing at your head? I'm not that much of an asshole," she said with a chuckle, and he forced himself to chuckle with her. After another brief look at it, she handed it over to Danny who placed it back on the table it was on previously. "This is crazy. I wish I could make stuff like this. Everyone in your family is a genius," Sam told him, but Danny only shook his head. He nodded towards the stairs as a signal for her to follow him back upstairs which she did.

"Yeah, well, except me. I'm just average," he said with a shrug, but Sam shook her head in disagreement as they entered the kitchen, the both of them sitting down at the table.

"That doesn't make you incompetent. Everyone is a genius, just with different things. Your parents were meant to be scientists and Jazz was meant to be a psychologist. What do you think you were meant to be?" Sam asked, and for a whole different reason, that seemed to resonate with him on another topic. His powers always seemed like a burden to him, knowing he was completely different from everybody else, but what if this was supposed to happen? Maybe this was who he was supposed to be; why else would he survive the incident? Maybe this was his destiny, but other thoughts said that maybe he was thinking too hopeful. Maybe he was getting in way over his head and was only fooling himself. Pulling himself out of his thoughts, he knew he obviously couldn't give that as an answer, so he thought of the only other subject he was almost an expert on.

"Well, I know it sounds crazy, but I always wanted to be an astronaut. I just love astronomy and chemistry and learning about the engineering of spaceships and everything that goes with it. I mean, the NASA website is literally my homepage on my computer. I've read everything on the website countless times." Sam couldn't help but get lost in his words as he grew more and more excited with each word said. There was just something different about someone having a conversation with you about something they loved. You could just hear the passion behind every word and a different light in their eyes. On top of that and Danny's crystal blue irises, she thought she'd never be able to look away. After going off on one of his favorite space expeditions, Danny realized he was probably rambling and started to apologize.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to go on that long," he said with a guilty smile, but Sam only shook her head.

"Don't feel sorry about anything. I wanted you to keep going," but he waved a hand in dismissal.

"That's enough out of me for now. What about you?" He asked, and Sam really wished she had an immediate answer like Danny did, but unfortunately for her, she couldn't think of anything.

"I have no idea. I like a number of things but not enough to do it for the rest of my life. I guess I haven't found what I'm meant to be yet," she told him with a hint of sadness behind it along with a shrug, but he only smiled at her.

"You'll find something. Someone like you can do anything," he stated, making a quizzical look appear on her face.

"Someone like me?"

"Smart and ambitious. A dangerous combination, but I've always been into that." He rose from the table to go scavenging in the fridge, leaving Sam confused on his statement. What exactly was he into? Her? That just couldn't be right; she found out through experience that she only attracted rotten men, and Danny was far from that. Before she could even give any sort of retort, Danny turned around with an energy drink in hand. "So what do you want to do?" He sipped his beverage casually as if he wasn't aware of his flirtatious ways, so shaking herself out of shock, she gave a safe answer.

"Is Tucker available? The three of us haven't hung out together in a while," she suggested, not quite sure what was going on with him when he was near her all of a sudden, but all she knew was she couldn't allow herself to develop feelings for anyone, even if their feelings matched hers. It would all crumble apart in the end anyway, and with their newfound friendship, she couldn't afford to lose him. It was bad enough she already liked his looks more than she should, the last thing she needed was to fall, ignoring the fact that he was the only goodhearted guy she was ever slightly interested in. She hoped Tucker's presence would prevent Danny from any more flirtatious remarks, whether she liked them or not.

"Sure! I don't see why he wouldn't be available. Let me call him," Danny answered as he took out his cell phone, and Sam let out a sigh of relief as soon as Danny stepped out of the room. She never thought there would come a day where she was practically praying for Tucker's presence; there's a first for everything she supposed.

Not even an hour later, the trio found themselves at the mall. It had been a while since Danny had journeyed here, the last time being with Jazz. He just hoped he didn't run into anybody that would recognize him, wanting to avoid any questions. They had been there for about an hour and so far, no one had said anything to him, much to his pleasure.

"You know, the new Spellbent game is coming out soon," Tucker was saying, although he was staring down at his PDA.

"You guys _like_ that game?" Sam questioned with a look of disapproval on her face.

"What's not to like?" Danny asked, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"The graphics, to start," she began to say, but Tucker's scoff interrupted her.

"The gameplay is all worth it, though," he told her, causing her to roll her eyes.

"Whatever you say."

"Hey, Fenton!" A sudden voice caused all three of them to stop in their tracks; they could recognize that voice from a mile away, but it was usually hurling insults. They hesitantly turned around to face the bully that tormented all three of them at one point, and as if Dash wasn't bad enough, Kwan was by his side as well.

"What a cute little nerd squad you geeks have going on," Kwan said as they approached, a cocky smile on his face.

"You disappeared after freshman year, Fenton. What happened with that?" Dash went on, drawing the attention back on Danny, who was only one out of many victims that suffered from Dash's wrath. Danny only shrugged and tried not to roll his eyes.

"I don't know. I guess Casper just wasn't my thing," he answered vaguely, but Kwan only smirked beside Dash.

"We missed beating on you, but it's all good. Techno-Geek took your spot instead," he said as Dash snickered at his remark. All three friends were on guard considering their behavior was suspicious because, in their own strange way, they were actually being friendly. They didn't seem angry nor did they look as if they wanted to pick a fight. If anything, this was the most relaxed the former bullies had ever been around them.

"Since when do you nerds hang out with hot goth girl?" Dash spoke up again, causing Sam to cross her arms and roll her eyes.

"Is this leading somewhere?" She asked, already annoyed at their comments.

"Well, we _were_ going to rag on you guys just a little, but we're proud to see you somehow managed to upgrade since high school. Well, as much as losers can upgrade," Kwan added before Dash chimed back in.

"I'm throwing a party next week and considering I've been feeling generous lately, it's not just former A-listers. Anyone we're cool with we've invited. But don't get your hopes up. This could be the first and last time you will ever be invited, so I'd focus on not embarrassing yourselves _or_ me." The trio exchanged quick glances at each other before Tucker spoke up.

"Is this a trick?"

"Yeah, why are you actually being nice?" Sam questioned with an eyebrow raised.

"Oh, we're club bouncers now. It's a surprisingly healthy way for us to get out all of our misplaced aggression," Kwan informed them, causing Dash to nod in agreement.

"Good for you...?" Sam congratulated, although it came out more like a question.

"We'll send you an e-vite. And that will be the last time I ever say that." Dash told them before both he and Kwan walked away. Everyone was quiet for a minute before they turned back in the direction they were heading and that's when Sam broke the silence.

"That was super weird," she stated bluntly.

"Did Dash bully you, too?" Tucker asked, causing Sam to scoff.

"Of course he did. He threw insults my way constantly, but hot goth girl? What was that?"

"I mean, nothing in that statement isn't true. Maybe he was just complimenting you?" Danny guessed, and although his comment raised some questions for her, she just laughed sardonically.

"That doesn't sound like Dash to me."

"Neither does him inviting us to a party, which we're going to, right?" Tucker asked, changing the subject completely.

"Why would we?" Sam questioned, causing Tucker's jaw to drop.

"Are you kidding me? Danny and I would have _killed_ to be invited by the popular kids to a party and this is our only chance!"

"Except this isn't high school anymore which means it's not going to be a high school party. Everyone will be drinking and that's when people get more stupid than they already are."

"Come on, Sam. This is our only chance to experience that. Please?" He begged, placing his hands together in a pleading motion. Sam only sighed and looked over at Danny for his opinion, but he simply shrugged.

"If Tucker really wants to go, we can go for a little bit then dip. I just have to wait for my parents to go to sleep so I can sneak out." Sam resisted the urge to roll her eyes, never being a fan of parties, especially when she couldn't stand half the people in attendance, but she didn't want to take this chance away from Tucker. He seemed to be the only one truly excited about it and this was his only chance to be able to go.

"Alright. You guys are lucky you're my best friends," she agreed reluctantly, and Tucker pumped a fist in the air.

"Yes! Finally!" He shouted, causing Sam to shake her head at him.

"What are you so worried about?" Danny inquired, getting her attention.

"Nothing. I just don't like spending time with people that used to mistreat me for their own amusement."

"Don't worry. I won't let anyone disrespect you. I'll protect you," he promised, trying to be noble but Sam only laughed at his response.

"That's nice, but I don't need someone to protect me," she told him with a chuckle, and he only gave her a witty smile.

"That's what I like the most about you." The comment caught her off guard for a moment, like she was surprised he would say something like that to her with Tucker within earshot. She decided to try to change the mood and played it off as a joke.

"Why, because you don't have to spend time protecting me? Lazy much?" She teased with a small smile, nudging Danny in the side.

"Oh, please. Whether you want me to or not, I'm always going to protect you." His words and the genuine smile on his face was enough to leave her in silence for a few moments, not able to look away from him until Tucker interrupted.

"Are you two done? God, you're like a pair of newlyweds," he complained, causing Sam to scoff.

"Watch what you say, Foley, or else I'm not going to that party."

"So? We could just go without you."

"Right, then who would protect _you_ guys?" She asked them with an eyebrow raised and a smirk on her face. She walked ahead of them, and Tucker noticed the look on Danny's face as his stare lingered on her before they started to walk after her. There was something about the twinkle in Danny's eyes that Tucker couldn't help but notice. It was almost as if he could see the attraction he had towards Sam with just one look. Rather than bring it up in public, he decided to save it for a different time and not spoil their time together.

By the time they had finished their walkthrough of the mall, all the stores were just closing up. They decided to head back to Danny's so Sam could drop them off before she left them for the night. She only went in with them to make sure she had everything before she left, but Danny wasn't very satisfied with her departure.

"You're going to leave now? It's not even ten yet," he complained, following her to the door while Tucker stayed behind in the kitchen on his PDA, but looked up occasionally at the couple.

"I'm just not risking getting caught," she explained simply with an apologetic smile.

"How about a half-hour more?"

"How about a no?" She countered with a chuckle, but Danny only crossed his arms over his chest and gave her a smug look.

"Good luck getting home without your keys," he said, and she only smirked at his remark.

"I have them right-" she stopped mid-sentence when she felt the front pocket of her jeans where she had stuffed her keys in previously upon exiting her car, realizing it was empty. She looked down to make sure they hadn't fallen out, but when she looked back up, Danny was holding them in front of her with a devious grin.

"How did you...? Give me those!" She tried to reach out for them but Danny only held them behind his back.

"What if I don't want you to go?" He asked, pouting at her for emphasis. Sam only patted his cheek roughly, causing him to wince a little bit.

"Poor baby. Now give me back my keys."

"Can I come over tomorrow night after my parents go to sleep?" He asked, causing her to scoff and give him an amused smile.

"If you want to hangout you could just ask. You don't have to hold my keys hostage."

"Is that a yes?"

"That's exactly what that is. Keys, please," she requested, holding her hand out.

"Cool. I'll see you tomorrow," he told her as he dropped the keys into the palm of her hand, satisfied. She smiled at him before she left and Danny shut the door behind her.

"Dude, do you like her?" Tucker suddenly asked from the kitchen, drawing the conclusion after observing his behavior. He knew Danny tended to give more attention than he should towards girls that he liked, and Sam definitely wasn't an exception. The sudden question made Danny's eyebrows fur together as if he had forgotten Tucker was still there. He was actually speechless for a moment, as if unsure how to respond, but he finally made a sound similar to a scoff and shook his head before he started to head into the kitchen.

"We're friends. Best friends, just like she said earlier," he gave as an answer, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against the kitchen counter.

"Duh, but do you want to be more than that? Give me details!"

"There are no details! She's just a great person. She's cool and funny... and smart, fearless, beautiful..." There was a sudden sadness in his eyes as he trailed off, and staring down at his feet seemed like the best attempt to hide it. "But we're just friends. That's all," he finished as he looked up, forcing a smile that Tucker knew was fake.

"You haven't made any moves?" He assumed, causing Danny to shake his head.

"How could I? Once she finds out I'm an abomination there's no _way_ she'll date me and second of all, she doesn't want a relationship. Trust is definitely an issue when it comes to her dating." Tucker only shook his head at him in disagreement.

"First off, you're not an abomination. Second of all, that could all change. Sam's not the same kid she was in high school and she's in a pretty good place right now. If you don't shoot your shot, you're gonna regret it," he said, and Danny let out a sigh as he slid his hands into his pockets.

"Why are you asking me this anyway?" Tucker shrugged casually but gave him a smile.

"All I was gonna say was, with everything Sam has told me... you could have a pretty decent shot." Danny could only sit there and process what he had said, trying to keep a smile off of his face even if the news did excite him. "But you didn't hear that from me," Tucker finished as he started to walk away to leave.

"Hear what?" Danny asked, causing Tucker to turn back to him and shrug.

"Don't remember," he said, but they exchanged knowing grins. "I'll see you later."

"Later man." The smile he had stayed on his face until a concerning thought entered his mind, kicking his curiosity into overdrive. "Tucker! Wait!" He called after him as he ran towards the door, catching Tucker just as he turned the car on.

"What?" Tucker asked, rolling the window down to hear him.

"What did she say, though?" Danny asked, leaning on the door and poking his head in. Tucker only shrugged and shifted gears to reverse out of the driveway.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Tucker responded, trying to hide the amused smile on his face as he slowly backed his car up to leave. Danny only huffed in frustration and shouted after him.

"Come on! Don't do me like that!" But he could see Tucker laughing as he pulled away from the house, leaving it up to Danny's imagination of what they could have possibly talked about together.

* * *

 **Can you believe this chapter is over 5,000 words O.o I'm so sorry for the wait, as always, but I'm hoping the next time I update will either be before or on Halloween :D**

 **Also, I just wanted to say that I see every review, follow, and favorite (not in a creepy way ^^') and appreciate all of it sooooo much. If you're a new reader and enjoy what you're reading, feel free to leave a review! :)**

 **Chloee0x0: Me too! And even more of it in this chapter! You're welcome XD**

 **Invader Johnny: Ah, yes. This is very true. Probably a good reason why they get along so well**

 **Guest: Right? Where do you think Sam learned it from? lol**

 **Mallory: The only way to bond lol**

 **MidnightWriter44678: Thanks so much! I'm so very grateful for your interest in this story :)**

 **argentsarmor: Thank you! :D**

 **Fan12: Probably not long. She's a smart cookie...**

 **alex-in-w0nderland: Thank you so much! :))**


	14. Chapter 13

Saturday was a surprisingly nice day for November, one that should be taken advantage of in any way possible. It was standard procedure for Sam and Tucker to spend Saturdays together unless otherwise specified, and Sam was actually looking forward to it. Only, their housekeeper canceled on them, which meant Sam had to take over all the chores that needed to be done. She had already cleaned the house, did the laundry, cleaned the dishes, and was just heading home from the grocery store with some items for Ida with Tucker on speaker.

"Why would you choose errands over hanging out with me?" Tucker's voice rang out through the speakers of Sam's car, and she was glad he wasn't able to see her roll her eyes.

"I didn't really have a choice. Some of us have priorities," she answered, adding that last quip as a joke.

"Best friends are priorities, too," he countered, causing her to chuckle.

"Danny's also my best friend but you don't see me spending every waking moment with him."

"You'd like that, though, wouldn't you?" His comment made her squint her eyes in a menacing way, even though she wasn't visible to him.

"Stop it."

"Stop what? You're the one who confided in me about him."

"Yeah, in confidence. You better not have told him anything," she said sternly as she turned onto her street.

"I didn't. That'd be breaking the code. Are you ever going to say something to him about it?"

"Nope."

"So you're going to suffer in silence."

"It'll go away eventually." Tucker tried not to sigh at her stubbornness, wishing it was easier to find a way to break through. She wasn't like Danny who wore his heart on his sleeve, ultimately making him easier to read. Sam was indeed very close with Tucker and had told him a lot of personal things, but he couldn't help but feel like she was still holding back.

"You're really fight or flight with feelings, huh?" He finally asked her, causing her to shrug.

"Feelings go away."

"And how's that working out for you?" Even when she was bottling up how she felt, it was times like these where she was surprised at how well he knew her, despite them being best friends for only a few months. Trying to ignore how she felt was only making things worse, but she assumed they would go away in time, even if it meant she had to suffer for the time being. She let out a soft sigh as she pulled up to her house, setting the car in park before rubbing her temples as if that would rid of the pent up frustration that she had.

"I just got to my house and still have a few things to do. Call you later?" She asked, cutting the conversation short.

"Yeah, no problem. Later."

"Later." She ended the call before turning the car off, gathering up the groceries and taking them inside. Ida was already in the kitchen reading the newspaper, so Sam set the three bags of products on the counter in front of her.

"I got your stuff," Sam told her, causing Ida to look up.

"Thank you, dearie. Did you move the garbage cans back to the side of the house yet?"

"I'm doing it now." Sam turned around and walked out the door and to the mailbox to grab the two empty garbage cans that belonged elsewhere. Upon placing them back in their spot next to the house, Sam noticed her terrace had tipped over. She just assumed it may have fallen after Danny used it but it was too big for her to move by herself and she needed it back so he could continue to use it. Heading back inside, she started putting away Ida's groceries for her.

"Is someone going to put the terrace back up?" Sam asked her.

"I know, it's been long enough," Ida responded, causing Sam to pause at the counter and raise an eyebrow at her.

"What do you mean? It just fell recently, hasn't it?"

"Sam, that thing fell at the end of the summer. Your father said he would take care of it and completely forgot about it. It's been on the ground ever since." That left Sam utterly confused. If her parents were home when Danny came over, he said he was using the terrace to get up to her room, but if it fell in the summer as Ida said, that was before she had even met him which left her with the question: how did he get to her second-story window?

"Are you sure?" Sam asked, but Ida didn't even look up from the paper as she answered.

"The Alzheimer's hasn't kicked in yet, dear." Usually, Sam would retort back in a playful manner, but her head was in other places and she instead suddenly went up to her room. Rushing over to the window, she quickly opened it to look out and around, trying to find _anything_ Danny could have used to climb up to her room with but failing. Frustrated, she closed the window back up and crossed her arms over her chest. None of this made sense to her. What did he do? Float? The second that word crossed her mind, an alarm went off in the back of her head. The book she had finished more than once mentioned that among other things, but that book was about the paranormal and Danny was human, wasn't he? Only ghosts floated, and Danny didn't look like a ghost at all... but what if that was it? What if, even if he looked human, he still had the powers of a ghost? That still left a question lingering: how did it happen? All evidence pointed towards the lab, but what could possibly do that? Maybe some sort of contamination? Trying to remember exactly what she saw in the basement, a shade of glowing green crossed her mind and where it came from: the portal. Even if it sounded crazy, Sam was actually beginning to believe it was possible. It was clear to her now that all this time he really wanted her to find out, finally picking up on the clues he was leaving.

All the strange occurrences that had happened to her when she was around him started making sense: he floated up to her room, he used intangibility to snatch her keys from her, the green glow she saw often could be his ghostly aura, he was nervous around the weapons in the lab because they could actually hurt him. Although shocked at this new discovery, she started to let all of the information sink in, and suddenly started to feel bad for him. Even if Jack and Maddie were isolating him to protect him, she felt like acceptance was more important than anything.

Sam lied face up on her bed, staring at the ceiling as thoughts raced through her head. Now she could see why Danny was so confused and unsure about certain decisions. Some people whom he loved haven't treated him any differently since it's happened, but other people he loved were trying to fix him. She was so lost in her own head that her phone ringing actually startled her, causing her to jump a little. Seeing it was Danny calling, she collected herself before answering.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Not a lot. I just wanted to know when I would be able to come," he responded as Sam rose from her bed and walked toward her window.

"You can come now if you want. My parents aren't coming home until tomorrow."

"Alright, give me like, twenty," he told her while Sam leaned her head out the window, getting an idea.

"Oh, can you come through my window still? It's just Grandma home, but you know, better safe than sorry," she added, staring at the fallen terrace as she awaited his answer.

"No problem. See you in a bit." Upon his response she hung up her phone, only wanting more evidence to use when she would finally talk to him about everything.

Not wanting to hound him with a hundred questions when he first arrived, she decided to set up her Xbox so they could play when he got here. She didn't want to risk scaring him off right away and thought he would be more open if he was relaxed first.

When Danny finally arrived, through the window he did enter, but Sam wasn't going to bring anything up to him until later on. Although it was a little challenging to hide the fact that she knew his secret, she almost wanted to kick herself for it. No matter what he was, it had nothing to do with who he was as a person and he was still the same Danny. She wanted nothing else than for everyone else to feel the same about it, too. It was only after their third round playing the most recent Tekken game that Danny finally sighed and held his hands up.

"Alright, I give up. You always beat me, at least virtually," he told her, resulting in a scoff from her in return.

"What do you mean virtually?" She questioned as she stood up to change games, causing Danny to do the same.

"We can have a real-life fight right now and see who comes out on top," he joked as she turned to face him, shaking her head with an amused smile.

"I'll have you know I took karate for exactly one year when I was twelve," she told him amusingly as if she wasn't years out of practice.

"Oh, yeah? Do you know this move?" He suddenly picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, her arms dangling down his back before they started flailing.

"This isn't any sort of move! Put me down!" She protested, wiggling in his arms, but he only made a questionable face.

"I was thinking it was more of a wrestling move if anything," he continued as if Sam wasn't struggling against him.

"Even if it was, you'd have to finish it. I just can't be dangling," she informed him with a roll of her eyes, but that only made Danny smirk.

"If you say so." He walked over to her bed before he basically flung her off of him, causing her to bounce on her bed at least once before she landed near the middle of it.

"You're a pain, you know that right?" She asked him, causing him to smile smugly down at her until he saw something in the corner of his eye that distracted him. Turning his head he saw that on one of her nightstands was the book Tucker told him about, and he walked over to it to examine it. Picking it up with his left hand, he used his right to flip through the pages.

"Studies of the Paranormal?" He asked as if he wasn't aware of it previously. "Coming for my brand, huh? How'd you like it?"

"Well, I read it twice if that answers your question. I mean, I'm no expert unlike your parents but if we had a conversation about anything ghost-related, I should be able to keep up," she answered, but noticed that Danny was quiet as he placed the book back where it was before he slipped his hands into his pockets.

"So, what do you think about ghosts?" He inquired, and Sam had a quick flashback of when they had first talked. At the time, she wasn't sure what the purpose of the question was. Now, everything starting to come together.

"You know, that's not the first time you've asked me that. It seems my opinion about it is important to you. Why is that?" The look on Danny's face told her that he was aware of what she was getting at, but he still seemed unsure about admitting it to her, so she decided to do it for him. "I know, Danny," she told him softly, and he was so still he was almost frozen.

"Know what?" She gave him an apologetic look, knowing it was scary for him to let somebody else know his secret, but it was obvious he wanted her to know. He dropped too many hints around her for it not to be true, so she decided to expose it herself.

"How'd you get up to my room?" She asked him, and the sudden off-topic question caused him to raise an eyebrow.

"Your terrace. You know that already."

"You mean the terrace that's been lying in the grass since the summer?" He suddenly became quiet again, knowing she would catch on eventually, especially after reading that damn book. "You've given me all the clues to figure it out. You floated up to my room, you were weary around your parents' inventions, how you took my keys without me even detecting it..." Danny continued to stay silent, looking down at his feet until Sam took his hand and pulled him down next to her on the bed. "How did it happen?" She asked, and he finally let out the breath he didn't realize he was holding.

"It was the beginning of freshman year. Tucker and I came down to see the portal shortly after my parents built it. They said it wasn't working so we didn't think any danger of it. I got the bright idea to go inside and check it out, so I grabbed a hazmat suit and put it on before I entered. Turns out my parents forgot to flip a switch on the inside, and I thought I was doing them a favor by turning it on, but the next thing I know... I'm getting electrocuted. I passed out and when I woke up... I was half ghost." At this point in their friendship, he knew they were way past judgment, but this was something completely different than anything anyone could imagine. However, even if it sounded cheesy, he always felt Sam was different than all the others, too. His first encounter with her proved it and left him curious for more, never having someone who didn't know much about him sympathize and care for him. She, on the other hand, had more questions than anything about all of it, and he knew none of his answers would make her treat him differently than before.

"The accident somehow infused ghost DNA with your own?" She assumed, causing him to nod.

"Basically. My ghost half looks different than my human form, but I can use my powers in either."

"Can you show me?" Even though he knew the question was coming, it still didn't stop the tension he felt. He nodded and backed away a few feet, not wanting to blind her in the midst of transformation.

"It will be bright at first, but you'll get used to it," he said, trying to prepare her, but she only raised an eyebrow.

"What will be bright?" A sudden flash lit up the room, and out of habit, she looked away just for a second. When she set her eyes back on Danny, his appearance had changed dramatically. His normal shirt and jeans were replaced with a black and white hazmat suit, his hair was inverted to white, and his eyes were a familiar green, the same as the portal. Although his ghost half was a sight in itself, he still looked the same to her. He had the same face that she caught herself looking at more than enough, but her eyebrows furred together while in thought.

"We're best friends, Danny. Why were you so embarrassed to tell me?" She wondered, but he suddenly turned agitated, looking at her as if he didn't get why she couldn't understand the depths of the situation.

"Because I'm a freak! So much so that my parents have dedicated the past five years of their lives trying to fix me, as if I have a disease or something! How can anyone accept me when my own parents can't?" His outburst didn't surprise her knowing all the pent up rage he had about the situation. Danny shared his thoughts and feelings often with the people he was close to, but his ghost half and parents were something he barely even talked to Tucker about. After keeping his feelings bottled up for so long, it was no wonder he was emotional.

However, it was almost as if he immediately regretted raising his voice in any sort of way and turned away from her, staring out her window as he rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous habit but also something he did when he was feeling stressed. Sam rose from the bed and came up from behind him, nudging his arm to make him turn around and face her.

"Danny, look," she placed her hands on his shoulders as if to make sure he wasn't going to go anywhere, "Tucker accepts you. Jazz accepts you... and I accept you. Your parents do, too. They're just going with the best option they think will protect you more," she explained to him, but he only snorted and rolled his eyes.

"They got a funny way of showing it," he muttered, but Sam gave him a disappointing look.

"Just because you're different doesn't mean you're a freak. The fact that you have something special like this is incredible, okay?" That seemed to lift his spirits a little bit and she pulled him into a hug, wanting him to know that she really meant what she had said. She found herself hanging on for maybe a little longer than she intended and stepped away, a nervous chuckle almost escaping her.

"So... can I see?" She asked, her curiosity getting the best of her.

"See what?"

"What you can do," she clarified, causing him to raise an eyebrow.

"Are you sure?" She answered with a nod of her head and an eager smile, and he couldn't help but chuckle to himself at how acceptive she was, almost feeling stupid for being so afraid of what she would think of him. The question made him wonder where he could even start, so he decided to just start at the beginning. "So flying, invisibility and intangibility were the first powers I got." He briefly demonstrated them one after another, knowing there was a decent amount to cover. "My ghost sense was another power, but I can't control it."

"You can sense when there are other ghosts around?" She assumed by the name, causing him to nod.

"You'll see it when it happens. It looks like mist is coming out of my mouth."

"As if you're cold?"

"You know how people say the temperature drops when there's a ghost in the room? Turns out we're pretty cold." He grasped her hand to prove his statement and Sam could feel a noticeable difference. It wasn't as if he was as cold as ice, but he was definitely cold enough for anyone to question it.

"Ectoblasts were next," he continued to list, holding up a glowing green hand to showcase it. The only thing she could really explain how they looked like were glowing green static globes, just way cooler. "Then overshadowing and duplication."

"Overshadowing?" Sam asked, looking for some clarification.

"I can take over people's bodies. I know, sounds invasive which is why I try not to do unless I have to. Oh! Last year I found out I can do this," he held out his hand with his palm pointing upwards before blue auras started to swirl above it in front of their eyes. Suddenly, a rose made out of what she assumed to be ice formed almost clearly, and she couldn't help but stare at it in awe.

"Ice powers?" She guessed, causing Danny to nod.

"Cryokinesis. To put it simply, I can use the cold inside of me to form anything using ice," he cleared up before he gripped the rose by the stem and held it out to her.

"You're letting me have this?" She asked, looking into new but familiar green eyes and taking the rose in her hands, surprised that it wasn't nearly as cold as she thought it would be.

"I made it for you to keep. Hopefully forever," he added, rubbing the back of his neck with a gloved hand.

"This won't melt?"

"No, but it can shatter, so just be careful with it."

"Trust me. I'm not letting anything happen to this." She walked over to her dresser to place the small ice sculpture on top, still staring at it in amazement as she backed away from it. She was realizing Danny's mood had changed, feeling comfortable around her already in his ghost half instead of feelings of doubt and worry. Turning around to face Danny, she spoke up again as she sat down cross-legged on her bed.

"How did you find out you could do all this?"

"Mostly by accident to be honest. Once I accidentally did something I would focus on it for weeks or even months to learn to control it," he answered, walking over to the bed before sitting down next to her.

"So what do you do with them?" The question threw him off guard, not really thinking he could do much with them.

"Huh?"

"Your powers," she clarified, causing him to scoff.

"Besides sit in my room?" He asked with an eyebrow raised, joking at his own expense before he shrugged. "Well, my parents didn't really want me trying to access my ghost half. I guess they didn't want me exercising my powers, but I did anyway. Why shouldn't I learn how to control them if I was going to have them?"

"Do you ever hunt ghosts like your parents?" She questioned, making him shrug unenthusiastically.

"Sometimes. I think it's good practice but if I get seen hurt, my parents will question it."

"Do you like it?" For some reason, he didn't know what to say about that. It was a complicated answer he wasn't sure she would be able to get it.

"I think I do," he responded, and Sam could hear the revelation behind his voice as if he was admitting it out loud for the first time. "It can be dangerous and I've been hurt before, but there's a feeling I get when I win a battle. Whether I come out unscathed or not, I feel... accomplished, confident, like I have meaning or something. Nothing can beat the relief I feel every time knowing that I've kept my family and everyone else safe." Sam could tell by the way he talked how much he liked ghost hunting but was unfortunately restricted from it by his parents. After his confessions, she could see that this was something that he needed to do. If it gave him self worth and made him happy, that's all she ever wanted for him. She suddenly stood and started nodding, pacing back and forth as she thought everything over. Coming to a halt, she turned to face Danny who stayed put on her bed.

"Okay. Let's do it," she told him, making him confused.

"Do what?"

"Ghost hunt," she responded so casually, and he wasn't sure she was aware of the penalties she could face.

"Do you know how dangerous it is?"

"Duh. Why do you think I'm not letting you do it alone?" She asked ironically with a smirk.

"You really want to ghost hunt?" Danny pressed, never wanting to see her hurt but also knowing she would be too stubborn to back down.

"Yeah! We'll get Tucker in on it, too."

"How exactly are you guys going to be able to fight ghosts?"

"With your parents' weapons," she said as if it were obvious. "That's where Tucker could come in. He can help us with technology and you could help us by fixing the weapons!" He stood up and started to shake her head, feeling as if she was thinking it was that easy.

"As if I'd let myself lead you guys into danger. That's exactly what I _don't_ want to do."

"You and I both know that once Tucker hears you're ghost fighting, he's gonna say the same thing," she countered, crossing her arms over her chest with a smug look. Danny scoffed, trying to think of more excuses to not get them involved.

"I suck at fighting, and I don't normally use my powers against others, so I'm not used to it."

"Then we can train you on Friday nights in the basement when your parents go out." The answer made him quiet, not because he was going to refuse, but because he realized that it could actually work. Sam mistook his silence as a bad thing and already started feeling guilty. "I'm sorry, Danny. I didn't mean to push you like that. You know it's up to you."

"No, no, no. You're actually making sense to me. For the first time since I've become half ghost, I'm finally excited about it. I just wish you guys would stay out of the line of fire." Sam only smiled and laughed softly before she playfully hit him in the shoulder gently.

"You know Tucker and I would do anything for you. That's something you can't change." Her words made him genuinely smile, causing Sam's heart to unexpectedly flutter a bit.

"I know. Same here." Rising from her bed, Danny walked over to the window, preparing to leave before it got too late. Sam followed pursuit, stopping in front of him to face him. "See you later," he bid her farewell before he pulled her into a hug again, wishing he didn't have to let go.

"I'll see you Monday," Sam told him as they pulled away. He gave her a lopsided grin as he stood in her open window.

"Thank you," he told her sincerely, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"For what?"

"Making me feel like I have a purpose." His response made her melt, but her heart stopped when he leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek. "Goodnight," he told her before he flew off, leaving Sam nearly frozen there in shock. After standing there for a few moments with her thoughts reeling, she finally closed the curtain and immediately fell facedown onto her bed, hoping the thick comforter could suffocate her. Why did he have to be so cute? Why must he make this so hard for her? Why did he just have to make her feel this way? Those questions were definitely not to be spoken out loud by her nor anyone else, but at times it could be frustrating to keep it in.

She finally picked her head up for some air before she rolled over onto her back, staring at the ceiling while rubbing her temples then huffed.

"I need a mental break."

* * *

 ***Says I'll update on Halloween and doesn't until almost Thanksgiving aka Turkey Genocide Day)***

 **Yeah, that's my bad. I take so long because I'm writing this as I go so I really need to pay attention to detail and try to make sure what I come up with will stick with the storyline. That and I get hit with writer's block every other month ^^'**

 **So I'm HOPING I'll update again before the New Year or on the New Year (this sounds familiar) Hopefully I can get it done :)**

 **Invader Johnny: You know I can't resist the DxS!  
**

 **lena .smith.106: Only time will tell... ;)**

 **alex-in-w0nderland: Oh my god, that honestly means so much to me thank you T.T**

 **Pokeshipper4life: Thank you for all the positive feedback :)) To answer your first question, I wouldn't exactly call them friends. More like acquaintances. They really only talk when they see each other at the club, outside of that there's really no contact. And for your second question, I think this chapter answered it for you lol**

 **Sam Manson Repilica: Aww all of that means a lot to me, thank you (:**

 **silente64: Thank you!**


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